


Twining Vines

by bornforwar_archivist



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-31
Updated: 2006-12-31
Packaged: 2020-03-17 11:12:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 75,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18964093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bornforwar_archivist/pseuds/bornforwar_archivist
Summary: By EchidnaBy the end of “As You Were”, in season 6, Buffy has made it pretty clear she has absolutely no romantic feelings or intentions towards Spike, right? Right! Then why is she so upset at the strange redhead that is now hanging out with Spike?





	Twining Vines

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Delenn, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Born For War](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Born_For_War), which closed in 2015. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in March 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Born For War collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/bornforwar).
> 
> Summary: By the end of “As You Were", in season 6, Buffy has made it pretty clear she has absolutely no romantic feelings or intentions towards Spike, right? Right! Then why is she so upset at the strange redhead that is now hanging out with Spike? 
> 
> Rated: NC-17 
> 
> Spoilers: All of season 6 and maybe more (You'll understand why)

# Part I - Introductions

The pale cloud of smoke spiralled around him, blurring his view of the house in front of him but before it could fade away, the cigarette was already back in his mouth for another long drag. He stood, motionless, under the old tree, staring blindly up at the window on the first floor; a stupid, dreamy look on his face.

He remembered the first time he had done it. Standing outside her house, fantasizing about being inside, in her room, with her. Though it had been little over a year ago, that night seemed so far away, filed in the back of his mind, along with the memories of his wild and savage days with his Dark Princess.

A lot had happen that last year. He had come to win her trust, to be her ally against a goddess, her confident after her resurrection and ultimately her lover and now he was back here, where he had started – standing under a tree, gawking at her window like a nerdy teenage boy with a crush on the head cheerleader, patiently awaiting for his crumb.

“Hey…" a soft feminine whisper brought him back to reality.

He whirled around to see a tall, slender, young girl; her hands nervously hidden behind her.

“Hey." He greeted with an unenthusiastic smile on his face as he grounded the cigarette on the wet grass with the heel of his heavy boot.

“She’ll kill you if she finds out you’re spying on her." The girl gave him a sympathetic snicker.

“I’m not spying on her." He immediately replied defensively, but seeing her cock her eyebrow at him he bowed his head, his gaze planted over the crushed cigarette. “Ok, so I’m lurking. It’s what I do, remember…" he pointed at himself and added: “Vampire, evil crawling…"

“… creature of the night." She completed his sentence for him. “I know."

“I just miss your big sis, nibblet." He admitted, looking up at her with huge puppy dog eyes as he shoved his hands deep into the side pockets of his duster.

Her reply was a soft smile as she leaned in to give him a hug. He wrapped his arms around her fragile form, bringing her as close to him as he possibly could without hurting her. The embrace lasted for a couple of minutes before he gently pushed away.

“I better get going. Don’t want the Slayer to know I’ve been around." He explained, starting to walk away.

“Hey!" she called out.

He came to a halt. Without turning around to face her, he twisted his head to his left, giving her a clear view of his profile.

“She might not want to see you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t accidentally be at the same place she is. Say… tomorrow… ten pm, at the Bronze. Anya is having a pre-bachelor-party party, or something…"

She could hear him smile before he spoke. “A pre-bachelor-party party, huh?"

“Yeah, you know Anya. She’ll make up all the excuses she can to get more gifts out of this wedding thing. Even make up a new tradition." Dawn smiled as she heard him chuckle back a laugh.

“Thanks, pet."

“You’re welcome." She said softly. She was sure he hadn’t heard her as he walked down the road.

***************************************************

Buffy let out a deep groan, tapping her nails on the kitchen counter.

“Dawn! Will you just get on with it? Anya will be pissed if we’re late." Buffy protested as she watched her little sister walk into the kitchen. “I can understand Willow taking an eternity to get dressed, but you… Why?"

“Hey, it’s not every night I get to go to the Bronze." Dawn smiled gingerly as she hopped onto the kitchen stool.

Buffy dismissed her little sister’s sudden burst of joy and concentrated on getting the other girl out of the house. She was about to shout when Willow finally walked into the room.

“D-Do I look ok?" the Wicca stuttered nervously as she whirled around to give both girls a 360 degree view of her long emerald green dress.

“You look amazing." Buffy finally surrendered to the contagious good-mood everyone seemed to be in and smiled lovingly at her best friend.

“It-it’s green. It’s Tara’s favourite. Think she’ll like it?" Willow asked unsure of herself.

“She’ll love it, Will." Dawn assured her. “Now let’s go. It’s almost 10." She warned, looking up at the kitchen clock as she opened the door and walked out, closely followed by Willow.

“Oh, now you’re in a hurry…" Buffy sighed as she locked up the door behind her.

~**********************************************~

The incessant drumbeat seemed to dig into his skull as the overly cheerful, bubble-gum, pop music filled the room. A multitude of young, energetic teenage kids banged their heads to the newest hit by the most recent copycat, corporately manufactured boyband to top the billboard charts.

“Hey, mate." Spike called out to one of the many people that crowded the place.

A tall, skinny boy turned around to face the vampire, revealing his pimpled face. Spike twisted his mouth in disgust at the sight of it. He didn’t really remember his teen years, but he was pretty sure his skin complexion didn’t look like a vast wasteland, covered with a massive amount of volcanoes just about to burst. Nevertheless, he swallowed down and asked:

“What time is it?"

The boy pulled up his sleeve, glancing at his watch before answering: “Ten thirty." and walked away.

The vampire let out an unneeded sigh and turned his head as he scanned the crowd. A sly smirk settled over his lips as his eyes found his target – a petite young blond girl.

She looked amazing. She wore a glittery, black, sleeveless top, which clung tightly against her skin, revealing her praised assets. Dropping from her waist to hover just over her knees was an equally black wrap around skirt. He watched her intensely as she strode towards a table in her ten-inch heels, which served to fool a stranger about her actual short stature.

He remained in the shadows, watching her surrounded by her girlfriends, occasionally laughing and he felt a sting in his heart. Maybe she didn’t belong in the darkness. She belonged out there, with them, centre stage, bright lights gleaming over every perfect curve of her body. His mind wandered as he staredthrough the crowd at a group he had tried so hard to fit into, but couldn’t. He didn’t belong with them, he-

Suddenly, lights went out; total darkness and silence engulfing them. Instinctively, he morphed into his demon visage in order to see better. He was relieved to find the group was safe. They remained seated, Buffy had her arms around Dawn and was saying something to her, while the two Wiccas and the ex-vengeance demon held hands.

Within seconds a loud voice was heard in the room over the incessant buzzing of the crowd:

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing a minor technical problem, which will be fixed in just a few minutes. Please remain seated and don’t panic."

Well, that was all he had to say. Immediately, the buzzing grew and an occasional squeal was heard from the middle of the crowd. People began to blindly try to find their way out of there, bumping into each other, pushing and pulling until someone screamed and that was it – total pandemonium.

Spike remained calm, feet firmly planted on the floor, his gaze frozen over the small group, which had held his attention throughout the entire night.

~************************************~

“Buffy? What do we do now?" Dawn asked, a hint of fear in her voice.

“Don’t worry, we’ll just sit here until the lights go back on." Buffy reassured her.

But the buzzing was getting louder and an instinctive anxiety took over her so she turned to Willow.

“Will, I think we better make our way out of here."

The witch nodded but, realising the lack of lighting in the place, she quickly added:

“Sure."

“We’re pretty close to the door. Let’s try it. Everybody, hold hands and don’t let do."

Dawn and Anya’s hands found each other as they stood up and began to push their way towards the nearest exit. Eventually, they made it.

“Uf." Anya took a deep breath as she stepped out. “I was getting a little out of breath in there."

“Me too." Tara quickly agreed. “Is everyone ok?" she asked tenderly, but her gaze fell over one particular person.

Willow smiled and nodded along with everyone else.

“Well, I better get back in there." Buffy noted.

“You’re going back?" Dawn asked a little alarmed.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine." She assured, then, turning to face Willow, she added: “Get everyone home safe." Quickly, she weaselled her way back into the club against the tide as everyone rushed out.

~*********************************************~

Relief washed over him as he saw her exit the place safely, but it soon dried up when he saw her walk in once more. Without another thought, he began to push through the crowd careful not to lose her from his sight, but it was impossible. Soon, he found himself engulfed in a throng of limbs and sweaty bodies, tripping over hands and feet. Accidentally, he stepped on somebody and a sharp pain dilacerated its way from the back of his skull through his entire brain. He clutched the back of his head as he tried to bite back the howl that threatened to escape his o-shaped mouth. Losing his balance, he tumbled and waited for the pain of falling face down on a floor, probably covered with broken glasses. But it never came. As he opened his eyes two large ebony globes stared back at him.

As the chaos of people drifted hurriedly around them, it took a while for his brain to register the slender curves of the body laying under his, but he soon identified it as belonging to a member of the female gender. The woman gasped as she tried to breathe, but the burden of his heavy weight made it almost impossible to move her ribcage. Realising her shortness of breath, he prompted himself on his forearms, hissing as he felt a sharp piece of glass cut into his hand. As his gaze drifted back to the person beneath him he found her missing. She was gone. He didn’t even have time to question how that had happen as the light flickered and lit up the entire place.

As the confusion ceased, he found himself being pulled up, off the floor. Looking up, he gasped as he realised - it was she.

~**********************************************~

Buffy drifted through the crowd, looking for anyone who might be in trouble. A room filled with people, in the dark, one never knew what kind of creature might be taking advantage of that. They might-

Her trail of thought stopped as the room suddenly lit up and the same voice, which had been heard a few minutes before, spoke once again:

“Ladies and gentlemen, I’m glad to announce that we have fixed the electrical problem. We are very sorry for the occurrence and, as such, the next round of drinks is on the house. Once more, we apologise for your inconvenience and hope you enjoy your evening."

She was about to leave when she noticed a small crowd that gathered in the middle of the dance floor. Skilfully pushing her way, she reached it and found him, laying face down on the floor.

“Spike…" she sighed as her strong hand reached down and yanked him up by his trademark duster.

He stared wide-eyed at her.

“Should have know you had something to do with this." She hissed.

He didn’t answer, he seemed a bit fazed out and he was bleeding from his right hand.

“Were you responsible for this?" she asked with a hint of superiority in her voice, but deep inside small butterflies crawled in her stomach from the anxiety that always seemed to find its way to her every time she saw him.

He shook his head, as if trying to get a grip on his mind and mumbled:

“Hum.. no, I was just…"

“Spike, stop following me around. I told you, it’s over." She said, turning on her heels and leaving him there, in the middle of the crowd.

~*******************************************~

“Stupid twit." He grumbled to himself as he dragged his feet across the wet grass of the graveyard. “Always thinks I’m after her… I wasn’t there because- Oh, who am I kidding-“

He stopped in mid sentence as a high pitch scream nearly pierced his eardrums. In seconds, he stood on the exact spot where he thought the sound had come from and found – nothing. Absolutely nothing. The only sound that reached him now was the light rustle of leafs and the distinct calling of dozens of crickets that hid motionless amidst the greenery, nothing more, nothing less. There was no sign of a struggle, as the grass remained unmarred, untouched. Everything was where it should be.

After a while, he gave up, shrugged and with slumped shoulders found his way back home.

~*******************************************~

She sat in front of the mirror, her hands blindly hovering over the desk to find the old comb. With a featherlike touch, she made it brush along the back of her scalp, aligning millions of thin golden strings into place. Her eyes remained glued of the reflected image in the mirror.

 _“I don’t belong in the darkness. I don’t belong in the darkness."_ The incessant mantra echoed in her mind as she went through her nightly routine. The sound of a door being pushed open snapped her out of her daze.

“Hey…" Willow greeted as her head peeked in. “Can I come in?"

“Sure." Buffy answered with a soft smile, putting down the comb and turning in her seat to face the Wicca who now sat at the edge of the bed.

“Are you ok?" the redhead asked with unease.

“Of course I’m ok. Why wouldn’t I be?" Was the blond girl’s immediate response.

“It’s just that when you came back from the Bronze you were kind of… cranky. A-Actually you’ve been kind of cranky a lot lately. Ever since Riley left. Is this about him?"

Buffy stared at her friend and was amazed how, in the midst of all the trouble, she still had time to notice her mood changes.

“It’s nothing. I’m just tired; from work and slaying, all that stuff." She lied.

“Are you sure?"

Buffy nodded. Slowly, Willow stood up and walked towards the door.

“Ok, if you say so. Good night, Buffy." She said before closing the door.

As she heard the lock click, she returned her gaze to the mirror in front of her, suddenly she heard the door open again and the same head, which had popped in a second ago, showed itself once more.

“Hey… Can I come in?"

“Sure…" Buffy said with a frown.

“Are you ok?"

Buffy stared at the girl sitting on her bed.

“Yes, Willow. I’ve told you, I’m fine." She sighed.

“It’s just that when you came back from the Bronze you were kind of… cranky. A-Actually-“

“Look, Willow, I’m sorry that I’ve been cranky!" Buffy snapped at her, but seeing the hurt on her friend’s face she added in a softer tone: “I’ve told you, I’m just tired. I’ll try to get some rest, ok?"

Willow stood up and walked towards the door, much in the same way she had just minutes before.

“Ok, if you say so. Good night, Buffy." And she was gone.

“Gee… what’s up with Willow?" she asked herself as she walked over to her bed and opened the sheets.

 ~****************************************~

“Welcome to the Magic Box!" Anya greeted with an automatic grin as she heard the delicious ringing sound which announced the arrival of a potential buyer to her humble store. It soon faded away as she recognised the familiar brunette. “Oh… it’s you." She said with disdain as her gaze returned to the mass of papers she held in her hands.

“Glad to see you too." Dawn replied with fake enthusiasm, walking towards the table in the middle of the shop and dropping her backpack before asking: “Is Buffy in the back?"

“No… She’s not here yet." Anya answered, not bothering to look up from the sheets of paper.

“Heya slugger. Whatcha doin’?" Xander’s overly animated voice was heard just as he showed up from behind the bookshelves.

“Hey, yourself." Dawn smiled as he sat down beside her. “Just finished classes, Buffy told me to meet up with her here. We’re going out on a shopping spree. Well, it’s more of a 'going to the mall to stare intensely at beautiful things that we can’t afford' sorta spree. It’s almost the same thing, except we don’t get to come home with pretty new clothes and with maxed out credit cards." The young girl grinned as she finished her sentence.

“But you still get the plus of spending quality time with your big sis, don’t ya?"

“Yep!"

~****************************************~

Spike mumbled in his sleep, tossing and turning as the Slayer plagued his dreams as usual. In shock, he found himself sitting up, his fingers tightly clenching the black silk sheets he lay on.

He violently shook his head, pushing back the images of her struggling and screaming under an attacker. Someone had been pushing and pulling at her, tearing the fragile fabric of her robe off of her as she scrambled away from her aggressor, clawing at the cold tiled floor.

Hurriedly, he jogged up the stairs, practically throwing the refrigerator door open as he looked for something to clear the dry and acid taste in his mouth. As he gulped down a glass of freezing water he found the fear pool away and turn into something else. A strange, sinking feeling of guilt, gut-wrenching guilt and shame.

~**********************************************~

“Did you see that woman’s face when you told her you weren’t going to take any of those clothes with you?" Dawn asked as she remembered the angered expression on the shopkeeper’s face.

“I know. I actually felt bad about her. She had been helping us for hours, she deserved her commission." Buffy said with a hint of guilt as the two walked home from the mall.

Suddenly, a loud crash was heard, not too far away. In seconds, Buffy’s mind raced, wondering what to do with her little sister.

“Hum… stay here." She ordered starting to walk off to where the sound had come from.

“Stay here? In the middle of the night? Alone? Do you really think that’s a good idea?" Dawn shouted at her.

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks and, rethinking her choice, she signalled her sister to join her. Cautiously, they neared their destination.

“That’s Spike’s car!" Dawn announced as she saw the old DeSoto. “I thought he’d finally gotten rid of that old thing?"

“Yeah… well, apparently he now uses it for crash testing into the Sunnyvale welcoming sign." Buffy sighed as she saw the completely destroyed wooden plaque under the wheels of the old car. A groan escaped her lips when she saw the familiar vampire stroll out of his car, cigarette in hand and a smug look on his face.

“Well, are you going over to talk to him?" Dawn asked.

Buffy turned to face her, blocking the young girl’s view of the wrecked car and its driver.

“I don’t think so." She grumbled.

“Oh, come on." The younger girl insisted, walking past her to meet up with the familiar vampire, only to find that he was gone. And so was the car. The two sisters gasped as they saw that in its place stood a perfectly built sign.

~*********************************************~

“What do you mean he was gone?" Willow asked confused.

“I mean gone, puff… gone. Like… magic." Dawn described.

“I-I haven’t done anything." The witch immediately defended herself.

“We know you didn’t. But I think maybe Spike did. He must be doing something and I’m going to find out about it…" Buffy started and looking up at the watch she added strutting out the door, stake in hand: “And it’s gonna be now."

# Part II - She

Spike gasped for unneeded air as the monster tightened its grip around his neck.

“H—“ he tried to speak, but it was no use. His eyes widened as he saw the piece of wood in the demon’s hand. “I…" cough “I…"

“You want to say something before you’re dust, vampire?" the tall, slender monster asked.

The vampire nodded and felt the grip around his neck loosen just enough so he could get the words out.

“I told you… I’ll get you the money when I get it. I-“ he gasped as the sharp claws dug into the back of his scalp. “I had this egg deal going, but it fell through, but I’ll get you the-“

“No more excuses, you’re history."

A painful groan escaped his parted lips as he wondered what an ungrateful way to go this was – at the hands of a class A bully. His eyes squeezed shut as he waited for the final blow, but it never came. Instead, he felt himself fall to the floor as he was released from the demon’s grasp. After a few seconds he was finally able to focused his eyesight; all he could see was the carcass of the monster at his feet - its neck clearly having been snapped as its head slouched over its shoulders. Spike quickly looked around but found nothing. Whatever had saved him was gone, leaving only the clear scent of jasmine behind him. He tried to follow the trail, but it was no use as it mingled with all sorts of other aromas of the night. The vampire made a mental note to memorize that clear scent before it faded away completely.

His hand instinctively went for his throat, rubbing it as he made his way back home, his mind still tangled in the events of that night. Who had been his saviour? And why hadn’t he stuck around afterwards?

With a heavy hand, he pushed the wooden door open and immediately felt an intruder in his lair. He frowned as he noticed that he had only picked up on the trespasser as he passed the threshold to his own home. This was very strange. Vampires usually picked up intruders in their lairs a mile away. Ok, maybe not a mile away, but it was pretty close. Was he losing his touch?

“You’re not losing your touch, fang boy." A female voice reassured him.

Spike immediately jumped up to attention and looked around in the dark corners of the crypt to find her, but he didn’t have to go to all of that trouble – there she sat, legs crossed, on his sarcophagus. As he looked into her raven black eyes he immediately recognized them. They belonged to the woman that had laid beneath him the night before, at the Bronze, during the black out.

“Good memory." She said with, what looked like… a smile? It was more of a smirk.

“Who are you? What are you doing here? What do you want?" His eyes dropped to the box of cookies she held in her hands. “And why are you eating my food?" he growled angrily.

“Help. Help…" she looked up as if trying to remember something and then added: “Help you and hungry." She widened her eyes as she finished, taking a large bite off the cookie she held in her hand and munching on it as another one of those ‘smiles’ curled her pale lips.

“What?!" he asked confused, frowning and bringing his index finger and thumb to press over the bridge of his nose.

“The answers to your question, I believe." She quipped, looking into the box. Finding it empty, she dropped it to the floor, jumped off the sarcophagus and started pacing around the room as she mumbled to herself. “Why do I always get the slow ones?"

“Hey, I heard that." Spike protested, but all he got was a smirk as she continued analysing every crack in the walls with peculiar interest.

“You really should get these fixed. I can’t stand the cold." She announced as she shoved her hands into the front pockets of her worn out jeans. She wore a baggy, two sizes too big red shirt over scruffy blue denims. The colour of her shirt brought out the blood-shaded threads of her auburn hair. She had it caught up in a bundle on the back of her head but, the two strands that fell in loops on each side of her face, framing it, gave away its long length. She wasn’t very tall, maybe 5’2… 5’3?  He couldn’t really tell as she walked around the crypt and, to be honest, he really didn’t care. All he wanted was for her to leave… Now!  

“Ok! Backtrack a little here. Why are you here? Actually… no. Why aren’t I throwing you out of here?" Spike roared threateningly, but it seemed to have little, if any, effect on her as she simply continued her private tour of his crypt.

“Because you can’t… And, even if you could, it wouldn’t be in your best interest."

“And, pray tell, why is that?" he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Why you can’t or why it’s not in your best interest?" Finally, she dignified him with a look.

Spike hissed as he narrowed his eyes, the anger building inside of him.

“You’re not a very pleasant person, are you?" she asked, narrowing her eyes in a mocking imitation.

“Will you just stop poncing around and tell me what the fuck you are doing here?" he bellowed, the anger spilling out.

“You know? You really should take some anger management classes. I hear they are very helpful." The answer she got was an even deadlier look from the vampire. “Alright, alright, you’re no fun. I love doing the cryptic act on you guys." She rolled her eyes and sighed, leaning against the sarcophagus and crossing her arms over her chest.

“I’m help. Basically, I was sent here to help you." As he was about to interrupt her, she quickly added, shaking her head: “Sorry, can’t tell you who sent me."

“And I’m supposed to accept this? Just like that?" he asked, waving his hands.

“Pretty much." She shrugged her shoulders and gave him a silly smile.

“Well, missy, you can just go back to loonyvile. It was nice meeting you and all, but I’m kinda busy." He started as he moved towards her and his hand came to encircle her forearm. “What the bloody fuc-?" he jumped back as he saw his hand go straight through her.

“Neat trick, huh?" she said with a smile as she waved her now semi-transparent hand in front of his face.

“What kind of ghost are you?" he asked.

“Not a ghost." She answered truthfully as her lips pressed together in a tight smile. “And what I am is just way too complicated for you." She added, moving away from him and shoving her hands back in her pockets.

“Look, I don’t like this one bit. You better-“ only then did the distinct scent of jasmine seep into his brain. “You? You were the one who saved me back there?"

“Dling, dling, dling, dling. You have just won tonight’s lucky prize." She shouted over enthusiastically, waving her hands around.

“You helped me? You’re protecting me?"

“Oh. My. God! You catch on quickly, don’t ya?" she asked sarcastically.

“Why?" he asked confused, sitting on the sarcophagus.

“My job." She answered promptly. “Now, can we leave the chinwag for later? You’re girlfriend’s coming." She announced.

“What girl-“ he was cut off by the distinct sound of a door being slammed open. “Slayer." He immediately hopped off the tomb, leaning on it.

“Spike." His name came out dryly as she cut the distance between them and came to stand in front of him. “What have you been doing?"

“Hello to you too, Slayer." He said with half a smirk, his eyes drifting from the small form in front of him to the not much taller woman standing behind Buffy.

“What. Have. You. Been. Doing?" she said each word with more contempt that the last.

“I. Haven’t. Been. Doing. Anything." He answered her as if he was talking with someone with hearing disability.

“Don’t play games." She snapped.

Spike’s mind was trapped between her and the woman that now stood next to him, leaning on the sarcophagus, with her arms crossed over her chest, a smirk on her face as she analysed the blond girl that spat fire from her eyes.

“I’m not playing games. And I’m busy now."

“Really? With what?" she spat the words out.

“What do you mean with what?" he asked confused, tilting his head towards the woman at his side.

Buffy frowned.

“What? What’s that thing?" she imitated his head-tilting as it became more obvious.

A small laugh escaped the woman’s lips and she finally spoke, her eyes never leaving Buffy:

“She can’t see me." Noticing the vampire frown from the corner of her eye, she added: “And she can’t hear me either." Then her gaze drifted from the petite blond to him and he felt a strange pang in his stomach as he stared into the purest black he had ever seen.

It took a while for his mind to register the voice that called his name.

“Spike, hello? Spike!"

“Hum… sorry Slayer… It’s just…" his gaze drifted back to Buffy to find her pissed.

“Spike, are you on something?" _‘Can vampire’s get high?’_ she asked herself. She made a mental note to phone Giles and ask him about it.

“No."

She shook her head and got back on the subject.

“Have you been doing magic?"

“What? No!" he replied promptly.

“Then why are you driving into Sunnydale’s welcoming sign one minute and disappearing into thin air the next?" She questioned annoyed.

“Look, Slayer, I have no idea what you’re talking about."

She was about to say something, but decided it was best not to. She was too tired to fight, it was too late and she had an early shift the next day.

“Don’t try anything funny." She said before she disappeared into the graveyard, slamming the door behind her.

“What was that all about?" it was more of a thought than an actual question.

“Don’t ask me." The woman next to him shrugged walking over to the refrigerator and opening in.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?"

“Looking for food. Don’t you have anything other that blood." She asked, her eyes wandered through the contents of the fridge.

“Yeah. I had cookies. You ate them."

“Cookies and blood, no chocolate, oh great…" she mumbled to herself as she paced around the room and finally flopped onto the wing chair, stretching her legs to their full length and crossing her fingers over her chest as her elbows remained positioned on each arm of the chair.

“So…" she sighed.

“So…" the vampire mimicked with an annoyed look.

“What are we going to do about sleeping arrangements?" she asked as her eyes drifted from the walls up to the ceiling and her facial muscles contracted to make a disgusted cringe.

“Excuse me? Sleeping arrangements?" the vampire asked narrowing his eyes, leaning his head towards her as if he hadn’t heard her correctly.

“Yes. You do sleep, don’t you? I know I do and usually in a very, very comfortable bed. Unfortunately, it took one look at this place to realise I’m not getting that, am I? By the way, did you know that the downstairs is completely trashed? It looks like someone dropped a bomb in there." She said as her eyes finally met his.

“Someone DID drop a bomb in there." He replied annoyed.

“Ouch!" she made a painful face. “Who’d you piss off?" she paused for a split second, never even giving him a chance to answer, before another one of her smiles took over her lips. “Was it her?" she tilted her head towards the door. “Did you cheat on her? Or maybe she cheated on you… well, no… it wouldn’t make sense that you would destroy your own home… except if you found her with him, in your bed and the pain was so great that you just couldn’t take it anymore and decided to burn down all the memories you both had. Is that it? Or maybe-“

“You watch a lot of Mexican soap operas, don’t you?" the vampire interrupted with a grin as he saw the annoyance in her face.

“No, I don’t!" she immediately answered, but not very convincingly.

“You do. You’re the kind of person that watches those cheesy soap operas."

“You’re one to talk, 'Passion' addict." She snorted back. It was her turn to grin.

“How did you-“

“The ten thousand tapes of the show you have back there were a dead give away." She replied before he had a chance to ask. Suddenly, she jumped off the armchair and walked over to the sarcophagus. Her hands pressed on it testing its hard consistency. “Well, that’s it then. I get the armchair tonight. Tomorrow we get a bed for me." She said matter-of-factly with a satisfied smile as if she had just figured out how to end the war in the middle east.

“What do you mean tonight? You’re staying?" the vampire asked in disbelief.

“Well… yeah. Gotta stay with you 24/7, till they say otherwise." She explained pointing towards the ceiling.

“Who’s they?" he imitated her gesture as his index finger stuck out skywards.

“They. Just…" she hesitated. “They." And with that, she gave him a quick shrug and walked towards the chair, throwing her entire weight on it and sprawling her tired body.

“You can’t just come into my house and…" his hands waved erratically, pointing to the area surrounding her. “And just lounge."

“Goodnight, fangy." She said as she curled up into a little ball.

“No, no goodnight and don’t call me that!!" the anger boiled up inside him.

She sighed, her head coming out of her cocoon to look at him with annoyance.

“Look, I saved your life… or unlife, right?" she asked and he nodded. “Now it’s time to return the favour. I’m staying, goodnight." And her head was back in her cocoon.

“Hey, you can’t just st-“ he started to protest. Suddenly, her hand was raised in front of him even tough the rest of her body remained undisturbed, and his voice was gone. Spike’s eyes widened as he tried to speak but failed. As he came towards her, to try and grab her, he felt his face bump into an invisible barrier, much like the ones he encountered when he tried to enter a household without being invited.

Spike gasped and panic took over. As if she had sensed his fear, she craned up her head and faced his wide eyes. Her hand came up again and in an instant the barrier was gone and his voice was restored.

“Just go to sleep, fang boy." She said with a tired face and pleading eyes. “We can talk for as long as you want tomorrow."

~****************************************************************~

“Hey, fang boy." The voice was distant, but as his ear recognized it, a strange gut-wrenching feeling started to turn in his stomach. “Vampy…" She called out once more, this time he felt someone touching his arm, pushing him into awareness.

“Hum…" he mumbled turning away from the annoying voice.

“Hey… Rise and shine, we’ve got a lot of stuff to do today." She insisted but got no result.

Annoyed, she decided to resort to more practical measures. Her small hands clasped the sheet that spread out under his sleeping form and, with one swift movement of her wrists, pulled it out from under him, successfully bringing him tumbling off the sarcophagus and onto the hard concrete floor.

“Hey!" he protested. “What was that-“ he stopped in mid sentence as he looked up and saw her.

There she was, standing in front of him, towering over him, her arms crossed over her chest as she incessantly tapped her foot on the floor.

“Oh, God… it wasn’t a dream." He mumbled in disgust to himself.

“No, it wasn’t. Now get off your sorry ass. We have things to do."

“What? You’re nuts. It’s not even sundown yet. I’m sleeping." And with that he snatched the sheet from her hands and rolled himself up with it as he threw himself on the sarcophagus.

“Oh, no you’re not." She warned him.

“Watch me." Was his short answer as he wrapped the sheet tighter around his form.

“You don’t get up this instant I’ll…"

“You’ll what?" he looked up at her with a daring gaze in his eyes.

Unexpectedly, the sheet twist around him, suffocating him to painful extent. The vampire was about to surrender when all of a sudden the woman standing next to him fell to the floor unconscious, the sheet falling limply in a similar way, releasing him from its grip.

Spike jumped up and came to kneel next to the woman.

“Oi… You ok?"

Slowly, she began to stir as consciousness returned. Eventually, she opened her eyelids to reveal her infamous raven coloured eyes.

“You ok?" he repeated the question and as she nodded he continued: “What just happened?"

She immediately jumped to her feet and tried to sound nonchalant as she spoke:

“Nothing. I probably didn’t get enough sleep in that ridiculous armchair of yours. We really need to get a bed, so we better just get going..."

Either she was a really bad liar or she was really, really nervous about what had just happen. Suddenly, realisation struck him and an annoying, overconfident grin took over his lips.

“You can’t hurt me, can you?"

“What are you talking about? Of course I can." She failed miserably at her attempt to sound cool and calm.

“No, you can’t. That’s why you fainted." His index finger came to point skywards as he continued: “They… won’t let you. You’re here to protect me."

She was beginning to get really annoyed at that smug grin. All she could think about was wiping it from his lips by ripping them off. Oh, that was just the perfect picture in her head. She swallowed hard before speaking:

“Ok, so I can’t hurt you… but I can make your life very difficult." She narrowed her eyes and twisted her mouth. Whirling her head as she turned on her heels, she headed for the door, opening it. Noticing the vampire wasn’t following, she quipped: “You’re just gonna stand there?"

Spike cleared his throat in a triumphant way and pointed towards the sunlight that cast down over her feet as she stood by the door.

“Sunlight…" his finger drifted back to himself. “Vampire. Bad combo." Then he gave her a smirk.

“Ha, ha… You’re just hilarious."

“I am, aren’t I? Come on, there is another way to get around town in the daytime." He said walking over to the trapdoor and slipping to the lower level of the crypt.

Moments later…

“Iuuuuu…" she protested, her face twisting in disgust as she lifted her foot to see something greasy and shiny dripping off it. “I just stepped in something extremely slimy and in such an advanced state of deterioration I can’t even tell if it was animal or vegetable derived." She shook her foot and added to herself. “Maybe it’s both…" her eyes drifted off the walls of the large cylinder-shaped corridor she had been travelling in for almost an hour. “Why couldn’t I get Drouglar demon, or even an Argentous one…? No! I had to get a vampire." She gasped as she heard a strange sound coming from under her foot. “Uhhhh… Mushing! I just stepped on something that made a mushing sound. God, I hate vampires!" she breathed between clenched teeth.

“Will you just shut up and walk?"

“I’m in a sewer… tube… thingy… T-this is just… ah." Her hands came to cover her face as she took another step. “More slimy, mushy stuff. Why couldn’t I get a…" she paused as an image assaulted her mind. “Chaos demon?"

Spike stopped in his tracks, turning around to face her.

“What?" she asked with a grin that screamed in a taunting, childlike singsong ‘I know something you don’t know’. Suddenly, her face lit up as if something had just come to her; her grin turned into a full-blown smile accompanied by a loud laugh. “A Chaos demon? You got dumped for a Chaos demon?"

At the vampire’s frustrated expression a new wave of laughter took over her and she had to lean on one of the drain’s walls to keep from falling. When she looked back up at him, she chuckled back her laughs and tried to recompose herself, biting on her bottom lip to stop from cracking up once more.

“Sorry…" her fingers came to cover her mouth as it seemed impossible to contain her giggles. She stood up straight and pressed her hands over her shirt, pulling it down.

He gave her a forced smile and then immediately asked: “How’d you now?"

She just stood there and smiled almost shyly at him.

“How’d you know? You can read my mind? Why you little…" he started walking up to her, the anger boiling inside of him.

She immediately backed up, her hands coming up to keep the distance between them.

“Hey, hey…" she breathed less heavily as she saw him stop and wait for her explanation. “I can’t *read* minds. I-I get… flashes." She tried to explain, but at his confused look she realised she would have to be a little more specific. “The pictures… in your head… when you think?" He nodded. “I can see them. That’s all. If you just think with words, concepts… you know, abstract thought?" Her index finger was now resting on her temple. “In my head…I don’t get a thing. But if you think with pics? About things that really get to you? Emotional stuff? Oh, that’s a whole new story. I get a Technicolor, widescreen action movie of it, only without the special sound effects. So, basically it’s a very good Charlie Chaplin sort of silent film." From the look on his face she realised she was rambling, as usual, and decided to get back on track: “It’s just the way it works." She shrugged. “So basically, if you want to keep things private, lose the imagery on the thinking." And with that she walked past the stunned vampire. Abruptly, she came to a halt. “Why is it that every time I say ‘don’t think in pictures’ all you guys can do is think in pictures." An image appeared in her mind and her tone changed to utter disgust: “Oh, now that’s just nasty!" She turned to face him. “Could you please quit it? It’s not my fault that you have a very depraved and twisted sexual life." She continued to walk on and suddenly another image flashed before her eyes. Instinctively, she pushed her eyelids closed, even though she knew it wouldn’t work to erase it. Coming to a full stop, she squealed without ever turning to face him. “Ok, now… I’m scared for life! Will you just quit thinking, already? Grrrrr…."

She growled making her way through the slime and dirt, which all of a sudden didn’t look all that slimy and dirty if she compared them to the images that were rolling through her mind. Behind her, the vampire walked after her with a huge, satisfied grin plastered on his face.

Part III – Shopping

She sighed in relief as she stepped out of the DoubleMeat Palace. The greasy scent of over grilled meat and melted cheese refused to stay behind and clung to every inch of her tired body. Sluggishly, she dragged her feet and leaned on the corner, a tall, skinny brunette following her close behind.

“Thank God for these breaks. I don’t think my body could handle another second without a major dose of nicotine!"

Her trembling fingers dug anxiously into her pockets and relief washed over the girl as they found a pack of cigarettes on one side and a lighter on the other. Hastily, she opened the red and white pack and brought a perfect cylinder to her deprived lips. Lighting it up, her mouth pulled at the small burning cigarette, her cheeks hollowing as she sucked the deadly smoke into her lungs. After what seemed like and eternity, Buffy saw two tubes of grey fog shoot out from her dilated nostrils as she exhaled noisily.

“Ah… I really needed that." The girl’s eyes finally opened to look at the frowning blond that stared at her.

“You know those things will kill you, right?" Buffy asked.

All she got was a deadly look from the tall brunette. Shaking her head, Buffy’s interest returned to her white snickers.

“Just checking."

“So, just one more hour to go and we are home free." The brunette noted as her gaze hovered over the cars in the parking lot of the fast food establishment.

“I can’t wait to get out of here. I think I’m getting allergic to cheese." Buffy protested under her breath.

“We all get that, honey. It’s the two month syndrome. You’ll get over it."

Buffy simply smiled. Her hands ran through her dishevelled hair and came to rest on her face.

“I’m just really tired, Lisa." The petite blond explained.

“I know what you mean. But it gets easier with time. Trust me." Lisa tried to reassure her.

Buffy’s fingers rubbed her sour eyes before they fell to her sides and found their way back into her pockets. Suddenly, a strange sound, coming from the back alley, caught the taller girl’s attention. It sounded like a muffled moan.

“What was that?" Lisa asked as made her way towards the darker corner of the DoubleMeat Palace; Buffy remained in her place, shuffling her feet, uninterested in the occurrence. “Oh my God! Buffy come quickly!" the tall girl called out, her hand waving at the Slayer, trying to get her over there as fast as possible.

“What is it?" Buffy asked not moving an inch from her spot, simply turning to look at Lisa.

“Someone is having sex back there." The girl giggled nervously, trying to keep her voice down so that the couple that moved sluggishly against the back wall of the DoubleMeat Palace didn’t notice her.

“What do you mean someone’s having sex back there?" Buffy asked, this time she started walking towards her friend.

She gasped and felt her stomach twist in a painful way as she recognized the long black duster that moved sensually, in the darkness, against the wall. Pale, small hands caressed his back, one tangled in his platinum hair, pulling at it vigorously, encouraging him. Over the muffled moans and cries of pleasure she was able to filter out her friend’s voice:

“I mean ‘someone’s have scorching hot, wild sex against a wall’." A mischievous smile crawled over Lisa’s mouth, never noticing the painful look on her co-worker’s face.

Buffy felt as if the ground had been pulled out from underneath her feet. Her throat started to close off and suddenly she couldn’t breathe. She swallowed hard, trying to push down the acid vomit that now crept up from her stomach. Soon, dizziness struck her, her gaze still fixed on the passionate couple started to lose focus and, unexpectedly, the blackness that now swam in the corners of her eyes took over and she was engulfed in a total darkness.

~*~

“Buffy… Buffy…" she heard her name being called in the distance. Slowly, she became more and more aware of her surroundings. She was laying on something hard and cold. She forced her eyelids open and was greeted by Lisa’s skinny face. “Thank, God! Are you ok?"

“What happened?" Buffy forced the words out; the taste of acid still in her mouth.

“I don’t know. One minute we were watching the x-rated movie going on in the back, the next you we’re laying flat on the floor." Seeing the young girl’s confused expression, Lisa simplified. “You fainted."

Slowly, Buffy pulled herself off the cement floor, into the sitting position and was greeted by a major migraine.

“Oh… I think my head’s going to explode." Buffy moaned in pain.

“It’s ok. Let’s just get you inside. I’ll get you an aspirin." Lisa offered as she pulled the short blond to her feet.

Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy looked towards the dark ally she had been staring into a few moments before – there was no one there.

~*~

“Finally!!!" the auburn-haired woman breathed as she stepped out of the sewer pipe. She looked down at her feet and made a painful face: “Great! Those are ruined."

“Will you stop complaining?" Spike hissed annoyed. He was having a really bad day and the last two hours he had just spent in the sewers with miss ‘I like to talk and bicker non stop’ hadn’t helped any. He was really beginning to hate this woman.

“Ah! Civilization!!!" the woman cried out over-excitedly, running towards the large building and gluing herself against one of its tall walls, as if trying to hug it. An avalanche of small pecks over the white paint soon followed.

“Stop doing that, people are staring!" the vampire complained.

The woman let go of the object of her affection and turned to face him.

“Actually they are staring at you. They can’t see me, remember? All they see is you talking to a wall." She said walking past him and into the department store with a triumphant smile.

Spike reluctantly followed, shoving his hands into his duster, looking around and noticing that in fact he was the object of everyone’s attention.

They walked around for what seemed like an eternity. Spike could have sworn he had never seen so many beds in one day.

“It’s just a bed, will you just pick on already?" he hissed in annoyance, anger slowly creeping up behind it.

“It’s not just a bed. You may be able to sleep on anything, but I can’t. I’m special and so too will my bed be." She held her chin up as she resumed walking.

“What about that one?" Spike asked pointing toward a large metallic master bed.

“You’re kidding, right?" She looked at him with disbelief in her raven eyes.

“What’s wrong with it? It’s big, I thought you liked big beds." He shrugged, confused. For the last hour, one of the many faults she found in all the beds in that store’s was its “minuscule size", as she put it. Well, that one was probably the biggest bed he had ever seen.

“It’s a big prison, that’s what it is. I mean, I can deal with a headboard, even though I’m not really a fan, but why would anyone put this… this…" she thought of the right words as she stared at the panel that framed the edge of the bed. “This… metal… *wall* at the foot of the bed. Might as well put two large barred walls on each side of the bed while they were at it, make a giant cradle. Plus, my feet would constantly be hitting this… thing." She said pointing at the offending item.

“I don’t think you’re feet would reach the edge of the bed, luv. You’re not exactly tall." Spike jibed with a smirk.

She immediately turned on her heels and faced him.

“Are you calling me short?" she snorted with a deadly look that actually had Spike a little worried.

“Ok, I can tell height is a sensitive issue for you." He bowed his head, to hide his smile, as he walked past her.

After another half and hour, Spike had already given up. He remained seated on a large loveseat on display, staring blindly at the ceiling, cursing under his breath. From the corner of his eyes he could see three women in uniform (obviously they worked there) staring at him as they gossiped amongst themselves. He could easily tell the topic of conversation – who was going to be the lucky one to tell the madman he couldn’t sit on the displayed items. There was no volunteer. He was snapped out of his thoughts by a light kick in the shin.

“Hey!" he protested to thin air and he was able to hear one of the ladies say:

“See! There! I told you. He’s doing it again, he’s talking to himself. I think we should call-“ She trailed off as she saw the man standing up, still talking to no one in particular. “Oh, my God, he’s coming this way!!!"

“I found the bed." The woman who had just kicked him in the shin announced, ignoring his protest.

“Finally." He breathed. “Well, now that you’ve found it how do you expect to pay for it." He asked annoyed, never leaving the seat.

“With money." She nodded with a smile, walking past him and towards the small group of women that gossiped in the corner of the store.

“What money?" he asked confused as he followed her.

“The money you have in your pocket." She explained never looking behind.

“What-“ he stopped in mid sentence as he shoved his hand into the pockets of his duster and found a hand full of paper. Pulling it out, he recognized it as being a large bundle of 100 dollar bills.

When he looked up at her, he found her standing next to the three, now terrified, women. She winked at him and whispered:

“I’ll tell you about it later. Just pay for it. I’m hungry." She pouted and walked away.

She leaned on the cash register, her hands crossed over her chest. A smile crept over her lips as she saw the fear in the woman’s eyes as she received the money from Spike’s hands.

~*~

Dawn, Willow and Buffy walked mindlessly trough the large corridors, every once in a while picking something from off the shelves and dropping it into the cart they pushed effortlessly around.

Dawn stopped in front of a display and finally picked one she liked best and dropped it into the cart. Looking over her shoulder, Buffy turned around, picked up the box her sister had just chosen and put it back in its place.

“Buffy?" Dawn asked confused.

“You can’t have those." Buffy said dryly, pushing the cart and leaving a stunned Willow and Dawn behind.

“But we always have Pop Tarts." The young teenager argued.

Buffy turned around and said with a deadly look in her eyes.

“Not anymore." Her voice was low and serious. Without another word she started walking away.

Dawn remained glued to the floor, but thought it was in her best interest not to protest.

“What happened to her?" Willow asked.

“I don’t know. But she’s been like that ever since she got back from the DoubleMeat." Dawn explained with a pout as she followed her sister.

~*~

A loud booming voice echoed in the building sending chills down her spine.

“Clean up on isle 3. Clean up on isle 3."

“How many times can they call out for clean up?" the redhead asked herself out loud as she looked at the wall of shelves in front of her.

“Remind me again why we are at the supermarket?" the vampire’s voice came out dry as he mindlessly pushed the metallic cart through the long corridor. “I thought we were just going to buy you a bed."

“We were." She quipped with a peppy grin. “But I need to get some food into my system. Oh, oh, oh, chocolate!!!!" she stared at the selection of bars in front of her with a childlike awe. “Don’t you just love chocolate? I mean look at all the choices you have. You have sweet white chocolate, bitter black chocolate, normal brown chocolate, nuts & chocolate, hazelnuts & chocolate, peanuts & chocolate, walnut & chocolate…" she went on and on naming all the varieties, when suddenly her face cringed up. “Raisins & chocolate?! Now that’s just wrong. There should be a law against misuse of perfectly wonderful chocolate."

“What are you talking about? It’s chocolate, for Christ sake." Spike swore annoyed at her constant babbling. She had a knack of rambling on and on about the most mundane of issues. It was just uncanny and extremely nerve-wracking.

“It’s not just chocolate…" suddenly a light bulb seemed to flicker on in her mind. “You died before ever tasting real chocolate and now you can’t actually taste it because of the whole vampire thing."

“What…? Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked.

“Like what?"

“Like I’m Timmy and I’m stuck down a bloody well." The vampire illustrated his point by mimicking her pout and her sad frown.

“It’s just sad that’s all." She spoke, the pout never leaving her mouth.

“Wait a second!" he closed his eyes for a second, and shook his head before looking at her. “Today you found out I was dumped by my crazy sire slash girlfriend for a chaos demon, only to fall in love with my mortal enemy, who hates me, by the way. Get tortured to death and back by a goddess, with a serious Marquis du Sade complex, trying to save her and even so having to watch her jump to her death and spend a whole summer driving myself crazy thinking of all the ways I could have saved the *one* which I now truly believe to be the most important person in my life. Then, I was lucky enough to have her back and actually like me, use me as her own private sex toy just to throw me away the minute her ex came poncing into town and you feel sorry for me because I can’t taste chocolate properly?" His facial expression was of total disbelief.

She tilted her head and with a sorry look she simply shrugged: “It’s chocolate."

They continued to wander through the endless corridors, their cart stocked up with junk food.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but… Don’t you eat anything healthy?" Spike asked as he saw her put three cups of Strawberry and Cheese ice-cream in the cart.

“It’s got cheese. It’s healthy enough." She answered, her eyes hovering over the display of a variety of extra fattening food.

Spike eyes drifted from the sugar and fat packed cart to the young woman’s lean form. How could she eat like a man who weighs 1000 pounds and look like that. She wore the same baggy pants and red shirt he had seen her with the first time, they concealed the shape of her body, but he could still tell she was pretty fit.

“What are you looking at?" she asked, her eyes never leaving the shelves.

“Don’t you have any other clothes?" he questioned.

“No. But we’ll fix that. Just as soon as we finish buying food." She set her mouth in a straight line and picked up three large bags of fries.

She gave him a small smile and walked away leaving him to push the cart. As they came to a corner, a loud noise was heard as Spike’s cart crashed into someone else’s. His eyes widened as he recognized the blond.

~*~

“Do you think something happened at the DoubleMeat?" Willow asked.

“I don’t know and I don’t think I wanna find out." Dawn said with frightened look as she saw her sister ram into someone else’s cart.

Buffy immediately jumped to attack who ever had crashed into her, anger boiling inside of her. She came to a freezing stop as she saw him. Flashes of what she had just seen a few hours before taunting her mind as she saw the duster he was wearing. The anger grew three fold inside of her and she clenched her teeth to control herself. Her mind raced as she tried to decide between making a huge scandal or pretending she hadn’t see him hump some disgusting ho against a wall. She decided for the latter. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of knowing she had seen that freak show.

“Spike." She greeted tilting her head.

“Slayer." He greeted back.

“Oh, the girlfriend’s back." The auburn haired woman smiled, crossing her arms over her chest. “This should be interesting."

Buffy’s gaze drifted towards the vampire’s cart.

“I seen you’ve taken up eating healthy food." She said sarcastically.

“You know me." He shrugged as his fingers fidgeted nervously in his pockets.

“Maybe I don’t." She began to snap, thankfully, Willow and Dawn came up behind her and greeted the vampire.

“Spike, what are you doing here?" Dawn asked surprised, giving him a huge grin.

“Just shopping."

The young girl looked at what he was planning on buying and saw a familiar box in the middle of all the pilled up items.

“I see you get to have Pop Tarts. Buffy won’t let me." She whined as she began to look through his shopping, she frowned as she saw a pair of pantyhose. She pulled them up and dangled them in front of her face. “Hum… Spike? What do you want these for?" she asked confused.

“Hum… I-I…." the vampire stuttered incoherently.

“Try and explain that one, Toto." The woman next to him mocked and he gave her a deadly look. “Just admit that you have a bit of a cross dresser in you." She winked at him, but as the clear image of her being chopped into pieces flickered in her mind she decided it was best to just sit back and watch.

“I-I…" he continued.

Thankfully, Buffy came to his aid:

“You shouldn’t ask people such personal stuff. Now, go with Willow and see if you can find some milk."

“We already have milk, Buffy." Dawn noted, pointing at the white cartons in their cart.

“Dawn! Just go!" she ordered. In seconds the witch and the young girl were gone.

“Look, about the pantyhose, I can-“ the vampire tried to explain but was cut off.

“I don’t care what you do with your free time, or who you spent it with, just stay away form me and mine. Is that clear!" she said with an icy look.

“What did I do now?" the vampire asked confused.

“I don’t know why, but I think I like her… She’s got… spunk!" the redhead said with a smirk on her face.

“I find out that you’ve been doing anything wrong? You’re dust." She threatened before walking away and leaving him glued to the floor with his mouth gapping open.

Part IV – Human

She dragged her feet lazily across the damp crypt floor, rubbing her eyes with one hand while the other searched out for the handle of the trapdoor above her. Eventually, she found it, pushing it open she climbed onto the top floor. Her long dishevelled hair fell down her back in paper curls; shades of brown and red shone from it as she moved into the light. Ignoring the sleeping vampire on top of the sarcophagus, she moved across the room, towards the door, pushing it open just enough so a few rains of sun filtered into the room. She stood there for a second, peeking trough the small opening. Her black eyes then drifted from the green grass outside to the sleeping form of the vampire. A smirk brushed over her lips as she noticed his chest – rising and falling at a slow, steady pace under the thin sheet. “Old habits die hard _…_ " she wondered for a second, then she shook her head and, after closing the door, reached for the elastic band tied around her bony wrist and pulled it around her huge mass of hair to keep it in a large bundle on the back of her head. Inevitably, a few stubborn strands refused to obey her, escaping to fall along the side of her face.

“Ok, time for the wake up call." She said to herself as she moved across the room back to the sarcophagus. She was about to reach for him when an image flashed in front of her eyes and she couldn’t help the smile on her face. “God, he thinks about her 24/7." She mumbled in a low voice. She shook her head once more, straightening her shirt before she woke him. Suddenly, she stopped herself as the memory of two long hours slopping through the sewers came to her. Immediately, she retracted her hands, stepping away from the vampire. “ _He is sleeping so soundly… I don’t think it would be fair to wake him up for another day of shopping."_ She tried to convince herself, but the voice in the back of her head told her she was just trying to avoid another journey ‘down below’. “ _Ah, come one. It’s just for a couple of hours. Not_ _like he’s going anywhere…"_ she heard her little voice protest. “ _They’ll never know, and nothing will happen! Now, let’s go get some decent clothes."_ A satisfied grin spread across her lips as she marched towards the door and exited the crypt.

~*~

A loud thumping sound, coming from the back room of the Magic Box, invaded the shop and a frown took over Anya’s eyebrows as she saw another customer walk out the door. With energetic, duck like steps, she crossed the room and violently pulled at Xander’s sleeve. The moment the boy turned to see her pout and wrinkly forehead he knew there was trouble on the horizon.

“Tell Buffy to stop making so much noise back there. She is scaring away the money." She protested.

“Scaring the money?"

“The costumers!" she breathed heavily.

“Oh. I’ll go and talk to her." Xander offered, but there was a hint of fear in his voice. He had seen Buffy this way before and didn’t really enjoy the idea of busting in on one of her ‘kill the punching bag’ sessions, especially since he remembered what it felt like being the punching bag. Reluctantly, he made his way towards the training room, leaving behind a more relaxed Anya.

She immediately jumped to attention as she heard the delightful ringing noise and turned to see a young woman walk into the shop. She wore a large shirt over dusty old denims – a hint that she didn’t have a lot of money to spend. Even so, Anya wasn’t fooled by the first impression and the smile on her face widened as she noticed the mountain of bags the woman carried with her. She had learned in her short time as a shop owner that bags equalled people that spend money, which was always a wonderful sign. Quickly, she made her way towards the woman, noting the interest with which she looked at the displayed items. A huge grin graced Anya’s lips as she spoke:

“Welcome to the Magic Box! May I help you?"

The woman turned to face the ex-demon and immediately gave her a soft smile.

“Sure, I’m looking for some of those incense sticks you burn to get the house to smell better, you know? Oh, and candles, well basically anything that will give out a pleasant aroma." The woman explained.

“Well, we’ve got a large variety of those." Anya explained, signalling the short auburn haired woman to follow her.

As they moved, the pounding sound returned and Anya rolled her eyes in anger, grinding her teeth together. She relaxed a little when she realised the woman remained unaltered by the strange noises coming from the back.

~*~

She walked after the shopkeeper, her eyes drifting over the various items in the room. The smell of old books found its way to her nose and she breathed in the familiar aroma. Suddenly, the image of a woman strangling a petite blond flashed before her eyes. She looked around and realised it had come from the friendly shopkeeper that was now showing her the variety of scents the incense came in. She frowned as she recognised that the woman being choked as the object of Spike’s undying affection, but her eyes never left the candles and incense in front of her. Slowly, the first image blurred and was replaced by the very recognizable symbol of US dollars. She was snapped out of her thoughts as she heard a man walk into the room, coming from a door at the back of the store. He moved quickly towards the shopkeeper and pulled her aside. He started whispering something to the woman, who apparently wasn’t able to grasp the concept of whispering and started talking loud enough for her to hear:

“I don’t care if she is our friend or if she has issues. She is scaring off paying customers! Tell her to go have issues somewhere else!" the feisty woman protested, turning on her heels and walking back to her. A huge plastic smile took over her mouth and she returned to the normal customer/salesperson chitchat as if nothing had happen.

The redhead woman smiled and sighed in relief when she realised she wasn’t going to have to beat this nice woman to a pulp, now that she knew the Slayer was not in any danger. She was actually kind of fond of the saleswoman; she was just so… unusual.

~*~

She pushed the door open with effort as the deluge of bags she carried seemed intent on burying her on the spot. The moment she was inside, she flopped on the cold cement floor; her breath coming in harsh and loud gasps.

“Man, it really sucks being human, no wonder I forgot about it." She managed to grumble to herself as she remained motionless, sitting on the floor, leaning on the piled up bags around her.

After a while, she opened her eyes and scanned the room. Between the sacks, she was able to see the vampire laying on the tomb, sleeping.

“You’re still sleeping?" she shouted from between the black, white, blue, paper and plastic bags.

“Hum…" Spike mumbled in his sleep.

“Oh, for the love of…" she mumbled. Taking a deep breath and covering her ears she opened her mouth and let out the loudest, eardrum-splitting scream Spike had ever heard.

In a blink of an eye he was up. Sitting on the sarcophagus, his fists clutching the sheet around him as his head moved frenetically around, looking for the source of such an ungodly scream. After a few seconds he noticed a hand waving from under a pile of shopping bags.

“Little help, please?" she called out.

Recognizing the voice, he rolled his eyes and collapsed back on the sarcophagus, intent on ignoring the annoying woman.

“You don’t get your bony butt off that tomb and come and help me I’ll scream my lungs off again!" she warned with a threatening tone.

Spike groaned and reluctantly stood up and walked towards the woman, pushing away the various bags until he dug her out of there. She was laying on the floor, clearly exhausted, eyes closed, arms and legs sprawled as she enjoyed the cold the floor was giving off.

The vampire shrugged and began looking through her shopping.

“You decided to buy the entire town?" he asked.

“Just the essentials." She quipped as she dragged herself back to her feet.

“I thought you weren’t supposed to leave me. Not even for a second." He mocked as he pulled out a long nightgown. It remained him of the clothes Drusilla used to wear.

“I didn’t want to spend the entire day walking through the sewers, thank you." She spat out, grabbing the dress from his hands and stuffing it into the bag.

He was about to say something when it hit him:

“How did you do this?" he asked pointing at all the shopping.

“With mo-ney." She worded out every syllable as if she was speaking to a mentally challenged person. “Do we have to go through that part again?"

He gave her a forced grin, which crumbled in seconds, and elaborated:

“How did you do it if people couldn’t see you?"

“They could see me." She answered with a shrug as she made her way downstairs, bringing a few bags with her.

Spike rolled his eyes as he followed her. It was just amazing how he had to drag everything out of her.

“I thought no one could see you but me."

“Well, they couldn’t. But now they can." She said, not paying attention to him as she went back upstairs and started dragging more of her shopping back downstairs. Something about the way she moved showed him the issue at hand wasn’t as unimportant as she tried to make it seem.

Spike growled and instinctively grabbed her forearm as he tried to still her. God, that woman moved like rat on ecstasy. He gasped as he realised his hands didn’t go through her like the other time. Instead, he was able to get a strong grip on her. His eyes widened even further as his long fingers finally picked up the unmistakable steady hammering of a pulse. He stared at her, in awe.

“H-how?" the shock causing him to stutter.

She breathed in deeply, contemplating how to explain this to him. She closed her eyes for a second as her free hand came to rest on the bridge of her nose. After a long pause she looked at him and, taking a deep breath, she simply said:

“It’s hard to explain."

He stood there, not moving an inch.

“I can do a lot of things." She began. “But most of them only when I’m… in a different… plane." Her eyebrows came together to form a small frown as she tilted her head to see if he was following her. He nodded and she proceeded: “When I’m in… that level, other people, besides you" she pointed at him. “can’t see me, and that’s when I can help you, understand?" he nodded again and she continued: “Now, in order to be seen… by others and buy all this stuff" she waved her hand over the bags that covered the floor. “I have to become… human."

“You still haven’t explained to me how." He said in a low voice.

“It’s just complicated. All I can say is ‘you’ll figure it out in time’, till then I can’t tell you anything." She gave him a sympathetic look before untangling herself from his grip and returning to her shopping.

~**~

Dawn trotted into the Magic Box with a huge grin, but as soon as she heard the muffled groans along with the relentless thumping coming from the back room, it crumbled.

“What happened?" she asked, trying hard not to roll her eyes.

“As far as we know? Nothing." Xander explained, his eyes never leaving the pile of cards in front of him. Apparently, he was trying to keep himself calm by building a castle out of tarot cards.

Dawn flopped onto one of the chairs and sighed loudly.

“Where’s Anya?" she asked as she looked around.

“In the basement. She decided to do some stock piling considering she wasn’t going to make another sale for the rest of the day." The young man’s hands trembled as he added another two cards to the relatively tall paper building.

“Is she mad?" Dawn asked, knowing how angry the ex-demon got whenever Buffy’s intense training sessions scared away paying customers.

“Not really." Xander grinded his teeth as his creation crumbled to pieces for the 100th time that afternoon.

“How come?" the teenager frowned curious as to the shopkeeper’s odd behaviour.

“Apparently, she made this big sale today."

“Really?"

“Yeah, some woman. Came in to buy a few candles and ended up buying like the whole store." Xander continued to explain as he returned to his task of building a castle, this time it crumbled before he even had four pieces together. He sighed, frustrated but stubbornly restarted.

“Don’t you get tired of that?" Dawn finally asked, after she had seen him fail a couple of times.

Xander shrugged: “It’s Saturday. There is nothing to do." The young man turned to see a very cheerful Willow walk into the shop. “Hey, Wills!" he greeted.

“Hey, Xander! Hi, Dawn!" she returned the pleasantries and took her seat next to Dawn.

“You’re in a very good mood today." The teenager asked.

“You’re… glowing." Xander added.

“You think?" the Wicca asked, the huge grin never leaving her lips. “It’s just that I saw Tara today." She tried to speak calmly, but the way her heart jumped to her throat at the mere mention of her ex-lover’s name she wasn’t able to contain herself and began to giggle while she spoke. “She said she might go to the Bronze later tonight." She shifted in her seat nervously. “You guys wanna come?" Her eyes begged them to say yes.

“I don’t know. Have to ask the Mrs." Xander answered truthfully, but knowing Anya and the good mood she was in he was sure that she would say yes.

Willow’s gaze drifted towards the young girl sitting next to her.

“I don’t know. Have to ask the Mrs." Dawn tilted her head towards the training room and then added: “The way those punches are rolling back there, I’d say the chances of her saying yes are about….. zero." And with that she crossed her arms over her chest and pouted.

Willow gave her a sympathetic smile and patted her on the arm reassuringly as she spoke:

“I’ll go in there and talk to her, you never know, maybe her mood might change." The Wicca shrugged and stood up, walking towards the back door.

“Good luck!" Xander bellowed, a shudder running down his spine as he remembered what he had already suffered that afternoon.

~*~

“ _Who does that disgusting… little stupid… dead… t-thing think he is? Coming to MY workplace, to…to bone some skanky ho of his."_  Buffy thought as her punches grew in intensity every time that scene flashed before her eyes; the way his body moved, the way she moaned. “Stupid bitch." She said out loud not realising Willow was now standing next to her.

“Buffy?" The Wicca asked confused, not knowing if the insult was directed at her.

At the sound of her name, she stopped and turned around to meet a very flushed Willow.

“Oh, Willow! I’m sorry, I wasn’t… Just picturing my opponent. You know… training stuff. Keeping the stamina up."

“Oh, I think you’ve got enough stamina as it is. You’re stamina packed." Willow followed the petite blond as she moved around the mattress.

Buffy sat down and began her stretching exercises.

“I’m just a little on edge, that’s all." She tried to dismiss the subject. “I’m fine."

“You’re not fine. You haven’t been for a while now. You don’t want to tell me, that’s fine." Buffy could see the hurt in redhead’s eyes as she spoke. “I respect that. But at least don’t let it eat at you like that. If someone’s bothering you-"

“No one’s bothering me." Buffy spoke quickly, denying that anyone, especially any vampire, was responsible for her altered behaviour.

“Ok. But, whatever is making you… stamina packed, well… you should face it. Work to solve your issues. It’s not fair to let it eat at you and trouble you like that." Willow spoke softly, for a second, she felt like a teen psychologist and Buffy was the reluctant patient who refused to accept she had a problem.

The small blond froze for a while as she contemplated the redhead’s wise words.

“ _She’s right I shouldn’t let a disgusting creature like Spike get to me. He’s not worth it. He wants to hump skinny little skanks against a wall, let him do it, see if I care."_ Her inner monologue served to boost her moral and suddenly, she was on her feet, a satisfied smile on her lips.

“You’re right, I shouldn’t let some vam-“ she stopped herself and rephrased: “some…. Whatever" she said as she remembered Willow’s own words and used them to her advantage. “make me… stamina packed. And there is only one way to unpack it… Heavy partying!"

A grin spread over Willow’s lips as she saw her best friend’s mood swing. She couldn’t help but giggled at the way the two of them were in sink right now.

“So what do you say… Up for some bronzing?" Willow asked.

“Let’s Bronze!" Buffy said with a peppy smile, then she realised. “Oh… I’ve got to patrol first, though." She paused for a second then added: “No problem, you guys can go on ahead and I’ll meet you there later. Deal?"

“Deal!"

~*~

“Fangy, will you explain to me why we are roaming a deserted graveyard?" the auburn haired woman asked as she dragged her feet along the grass, leaving deep tracks behind her.

“I’m fight parched. I need a refill." He frowned as he realise he was using Buffy speak now. God, that girl just wouldn’t let his thoughts be would she.

“Ok, if you wanna lie… At least have the decency not to picture your very likely encounter with her." She mumbled under breath.

“Hey! I thought you only had your powers when you were… on another level." Spike protested, stopping dead in his tracks.

“I said most of my powers. This one is always with me. It’s kinda like a curse, especially when I have to baby-sit a vampire with a major crush on the Slayer." She groaned as she continued walking, leaving him behind. “Plus, I don’t think I need special powers to see that one. I mean, it’s nigh time, we’re in a cemetery, who are we most likely to find besides newborn vampires? You don’t even need Sherlock Holmes’ reasoning abilities to figure that one out." 

“Fine, so I’m looking for her. Is that a crime?" he asked defensively as he fell into step with her.

“No. Not at all. Just don’t like you to think I’m that dumb that’s all." suddenly she wasn’t able to speak as she felt the vampire’s cold hand come to cover her mouth.

“She’s here." He looked wildly around and then pointing at a bush near by ordered: “Hide there."

“You want me to crawl into that bush and stay there while you make moon eyes at her? Are you out of your tiny little mind fangy?" the redhead asked in disbelief.

The vampire sighed at the sound of his new nickname and decided to counterattack:

“Come on, freckles. It’s just a favour. I’m asking." Spike looked at her with pleading eyes.

“Freckles?" Her hand came to rest self-consciously on her nose over the small brown spots that paved her perfectly white completion. She looked up with a pout and a frown as the vampire gave her his best ‘innocent schoolboy’ look. "Oh, ok. Fine!" she sighed rolling her eyes as she agreed, but not before making her discontent evident by her extreme sulk and the way she dug her feet into the ground as she made her way towards the bush.

Just as she kneeled and fell out of sight, from behind a tree, the small blond appeared.

“Slayer!" Spike greeted with fake surprise.

“Spike…" she mumbled under her breath, intent on ignoring the annoying vampire as she passed by him without even giving him a glance.

“Is that the way to greet an old boyfriend?"

That simple statement had the blood in her veins boil up. In seconds, she whirled around and with her chin raised high, gazed at the vampire with deadly eyes.

“You were NEVER my boyfriend!" She spat out the words, sadistic satisfaction washing over her when she saw a hint of pain flash in his blue orbs. ‘ _If you had been my boyfriend you wouldn’t have gone around humping some dumb ho against a wall!’_ she thought, but instead simply said: “You NEVER will be. Get that through your thick skull. No matter what you do, or should I say - who you do - I won’t change my mind." Her brain raced as the images that had haunted her the past days sprung to mind. The pictures cut into her and she wanted to hurt him as much as he had her. She imagined herself dancing teasingly against some guy at the Bronze while he watched in the darkness. That single picture served to dull the pain in her. “You’re a pig Spike and I hate you. I don’t, I will NEVER, love YOU." And with that she turned on her heels and left him there, every single word seeping into him, pulling at him; a gut-wrenching pain running inside of him, dilacerating everything in its track.

It took a few seconds for him to realise that his strange roommate now stood next to him. He looked into her raven eyes and found something he hadn’t seen yet - empathy. As the pain washed away, anger and humiliation took over and with a hoarse voice he growled under his breath:

“Don’t say anything."

~*~

She turned in her bed as Spike’s thought’s flashed in front of her eyes. A mixture of pain and hatred brew in her as she thought of all he had gone through for that girl.

“Stubborn little…" she murmured to herself.

The worst was the images she had gotten from her the few times she had seen her. She couldn’t really understand them. Sometimes it was clear she felt something for the vampire who was now torturing his and her mind upstairs, but others… Like just a few moments before, she had had the clear image of Spike, his back turned to her. Somehow, that single image instilled more anger and hatred in the short girl than any other she had captured from the vampire. Slowly, she forced her mind to remember more details of it and then she saw it… a small feminine hand curling its fingers around short platinum hairs. As she joined the series of images together she got the unmistakable movement of two bodies grinding against each other; the smaller one’s identity concealed behind Spike’s broad shoulders.

“She was jealous…" As realisation hit her, a mischievous grin took over her pale lips. Maybe there was something there she could work with. Her mind raced as she quickly sketched out a plan. Suddenly, her smile crumbled. “I can’t interfere." She remembered. “It’s not fair…" she sulked as yet another inner conflict grew inside of her. “I mean, the guy’s up there grilling himself and *me* with images of her and I can’t do anything about it." She crossed her arms around herself and remained perfectly still for a few seconds. Soon, her Eureka moment struck and she was sitting on the bed. “I can’t interfere using my powers. And I won’t use my powers, I’ll just use good old fashion jealousy…" her lips pulled sideways for another one of her trademark smiles. “Now all I have to figure out is where she is gonna be tonight?" She was off the bed and going through her shopping bags as the image of Buffy dancing in, what looked like a club, flashed before her eyes.

 Part V – Meeting Sam .

He stared blindly up at the ceiling. His hands rested on the back of his neck as he replayed his last encounter with her. Her harsh words echoed in his ears and he felt his stomach turn in an excruciatingly painful way. “ _What did I do now?"_ was the question that hammered in his head when he sensed someone crawl from under the trapdoor to his right. His eyes remained glued to the ceiling, intent on ignoring the woman. He really didn’t feel like hearing her endless babbling.

“Since you’re here… Stop burning those bloody incense sticks. The smell is making me want to heave." He hissed, closing his eyes.

“I like that smell."

He heard the distinct sound of sharp footsteps walking about the room.

“Well I hate jasmine. Who buys jasmine scented incense, anyway?" he practically groaned.

“Are you going to be in such a fowl mood all night? Cause I’m seriously reconsidering taking you with me."

At her words he craned up one lazy eyelid.

“What are you talking about?" Slothfully, he sat up on the sarcophagus; dozy eyes looking for her. A frown settled on his eyebrows as he finally saw her. She was kneeling next to his trunk going through his clothes.

“Don’t you have any clothing that is not adequate for a funeral?" she sighed frustrated, flopping onto the floor and leaning against the chest.

“Once again… Let me see if I can make my question clearer… What the bloody hell are you talking about?"

A wicked grin grew over her lips and she quipped: “We’re stepping out!"

“Huh?"

“We’re going out. Dancing." She announced matter-of-factly as she stood up and restarted looking through his clothes.

“I don’t dance." He spat back, slumping onto the sarcophagus to resume analysing the patterns on the ceiling.

“Gee… What is it with you and black?" she mumbled under her breath as she threw away another black piece of clothing.

“Vampire." He answered dryly.

“A-ha!" she cheered triumphantly as she picked up a red shirt. “Red. It’s an improvement."

Spike craned his head up to look at her and mumbled:

“Will you stop going through my clothes. I’m not going." He insisted, sitting up and looking at her.

She stood next to the truck, a bunch of his clothes piled up at her feet while she straightened his infamous red shirt. Spike noticed that, for the first time since he’d met her, she was wearing something other than her dusty old denims and red shirt. Instead, she wore brand new washed-out blue jeans that hung low on her waist. The fabric clung tightly against her thighs down to her knees where it spread out slightly until it reached her ankles. The white tank top that covered her chest had only one strap, which crossed over her right shoulder leaving her left one and her sharp collarbone exposed. Between the low cut denims and her top, her perfectly flat white stomach peaked out along with her partially exposed navel. To finish off, the thick metal belt that hung low over her hips matched her brown high heeled boots.

“You’re coming." She stated matter-of-factly.

“And why’s that?" he asked cocking an eyebrow.

“Because you’re driving me insane with the 24/7 Buffy Summers telethon that is running in my brain. Isn’t there anything else in your life worth moping about?" She sighed deeply, taking a pair of black jeans and the red shirt and flinging it towards him. “Now, put those on."

“Right." He said as he flopped back onto the sarcophagus, ignoring her, but it seemed impossible as she came to tower over him, whining:

“Oh, come on… I became human for you."

He opened his eyes sluggishly and frowned when he saw her sulk.

“You became human so you could go shopping."

“Exactly! So I could look pretty for you." An unbelievably fake smile took over her lips as she tilted her head.

“I’m not going."

“Please…. Pretty please! Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease! I can go on for hours, you know?" she informed him with a raised eyebrow as she saw him close his eyes.

She whined until her voice went hoarse but there was absolutely no effect on the apparently sleeping vampire.

“What if I tell you I can guarantee you she is going to be there?" she tried hopeful.

“Who’s she?" he asked looking at her through one eye, while the other remained closed.

“Who do you think, Einstein?" She widened her eyes for a fraction of a second.

“Who says I want to see her? I don’t."

“Oh, for Christ sake. Let me run this by you one more time:" As she spoke, her hands waved wildly around her as if gesturing to a deaf person. First she pointed to herself. “I can…" She pointed to her eye. “See the…" her hands came together to form the shape of a rectangle. “Pictures that…" Her fingers moved together and apart to mimic a blinking effect. “Flash in your…" Finally her index finger came to tap on his forehead. “HEAD! Un-der-stand now?"

Spike simply made a face of disgust.

“I know you’re thinking about her and I know you want to see her. So why are you trying to deny it?"

“Keep the shred of dignity that is left?" he suggested sarcastically.

“Come on. It’ll be fun!" her eyes brightened as she spoke.

He paused, looked at the clothes she had chosen for him, picked them up and her eyes widened for a second.

“Goodnight, freckles." He mumbled, shoving the clothes at her.

~*~

“First I thought she was a teaser, but actually she wasn’t." the ex-demon spoke loudly over the roaring music.

“A teaser?" Willow asked confused.

At that Xander stepped in, a sense of pride causing him to fill up his lungs before he explained:

“A teaser is a person that gives off the first impression that they will buy a lot of things, but in reality don’t. They’re just there to waste your time. And time is money, right honey?" The young man looked at his fiancée who was now lightly rubbing his back as she nodded in approval.

“She bought 20 candles, 40 jasmine smelly sticks plus, three very heavy and very expensive volumes of ‘Witchcraft – Past, Present and Future’." Anya spoke with a triumphant smile.

“Wow." Tara tried to sound enthusiastic.

“You bet ya wow. I think I just made a new best friend." A huge grin spread over Anya’s lips as she sipped from her margarita. “Plus, she gave me this really cool tip on this store down on Roosevelt drive… really cheap prices on bridesmaid’s dresses. This way I can save on those and spend the money on important stuff." She announced.

“Glad to know we’re not important." Willow whispered to Tara, who gave her an accomplice’s smile.

~*~

“I can’t believe I let you dragged me here." Spike groaned as he stepped into the loud club.

“Ah, come on. This is where we met." She gave him a huge smile, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the crowed. “Come on, let’s get a table."

Spike dragged his feet as he limply followed her. He really wasn’t in the mood for any of this. All he wanted to do was stay at home and mope, as she had put it. The only reason for being there was the hope of finding the petite blond. His eyes scanned the room failing to find her, but he easily detected the familiar Scooby Gang sitting on the other side of the dance floor. Maybe the crazed woman sitting next to him was right - maybe she was going to show up… Now, if only he could ditch his unwanted roommate he might have a chance to figure out what was going on with the Slayer.

“I’m going to the ladies’ room." The auburn haired woman announced as she stood up and walked away.

“Knock yourself out."

~*~

“Hey guys!" Buffy greeted as she arrived and flopped onto the stool.

“Hey!" the gang replied in unison.

“You sure took your time." Xander noted as he looked at his wrist watch.

“Didn’t know whether to go for skirt of pants." The Slayer explained. “Big dilemma.

“See you decided for shirt. Suits you." Willow complemented the long black skirt her best friend wore.

“Thanks." Buffy looked around the table and asked: “Where’s Anya?"

“Nature called." Xander explained. “What about Dawn?"

“I actually let her come, but she got this phone call from Janice. Apparently, the girl found out her boyfriend was cheating on her. Dawn decided to go sleep at her place. You know, do some serious boy-bashing."

Buffy looked at Willow and smiled as she recalled their own days of boy-bashing. Her eyes scanned the room and she felt her stomach turn as she noticed the platinum head moving through the crowd in her direction. In a blink of an eye, she stood up and walked towards him to meet him half way – away from her friends.

“What are you doing here?" she asked dryly as dancing teenagers engulfed them.

“Mingling." He answered. “It’s a public place."

“Are you following me?" she continued her usual enquiry.

“No."

“Are you going to say an actual sentence tonight?"

“Maybe."

“Ok, that’s it. I’m leaving." She said turning to exit when she changed her mind as a last minute insult came to mind. She whirled around on her feet to face him and gasped as she found herself inches away from him. He stood in front of her, the mass of dancing teens around them causing their bodies to come together. A chill ran down her spine as she felt his chest pressed against her, his pelvis pushed towards hers.

~*~

“Where did the buffster go?" Xander asked looking around.

“I think she saw someone. I don’t know." Willow offered as she turned to see Anya approaching.

She was giggling loudly, talking to a redhead woman who followed her close behind as they reached the table.

“You guys…" Tara and Xander turned to look at the ex-demon. “This is Samantha, the woman I was telling you about."

A frowning expression ruled over the three’s faces.

“The woman from the Magic Box, earlier. The one that bought all those things? Xander you remember her, don’t you?"  Anya asked, but the young man seemed to be out of it as he gawked at the woman standing next to his fiancée.

“I don’t think he does. You came in to tell Anya about some problem in the back room, remember?" the woman finally spoke.

“Ah! Yes, the woman from the jasmine scented incense sticks. I remember." Xander finally seemed to snap out of his daze.

In the meantime, the gawkiness seemed to spread over to Willow as she too stared at the new acutance. However, she quickly snapped out of it as she felt a stabbing pain at her side. She turned to see Tara hastily putting away the toothpick she held in her hand.

Willow couldn’t contain a smile as she realised: “ _She’s jealous!_ " Her heart suddenly flip-flopped with joy and the auburn haired woman she had just met faded out of her mind as she looked into Tara’s eyes.

Oblivious to the events happening around her, Anya continued the introductions:

“Samantha, this is Willow…" The Wicca managed to look away from the girl sitting next to her and smiled. “Tara…" With a shy smirk and a nod, Tara greeted the woman who smiled sweetly back at her. “They’re gay!" Xander sighed audibly as Anya announced it loudly. “And finally this is Xander, my apparently eternal fiancée." The ex-demon grumbled.

“Hey!" Sam greeted as she took a seat next to Anya.

“So, what do you do, Sam?" Willow attempted to start off a conversation.

“I’m in…. security." ‘ _Well, technically, I’m not lying.’_ She thought to herself. She really hated lying to them, they seemed like nice people.

“Really? H-how?" Tara piped up and got a smile from Willow.

“I’m sort of like a… bodyguard." Samantha managed to say as her eyes drifted over the crowd and she spotted the unmistakable platinum head of her roommate. A smirk grew on her face as she noticed the petite blond standing next to him for a split second before they were engulfed by the crowd.

~*~

Spike swallowed hard as they stared at each other, their faces inches apart. She was so close, closer than she’d ever gotten to him since… He wasn’t able to finish his thought as she pushed him away, causing him to stumble backwards.

“You know something? I’m not leaving. I’m here with my friends to have fun and I’m not gonna to let you ruin this for me like you do everything else." She spat out. “You wanna stay, be my guest." And with that she whirled around to leave but the feel of cold fingers gripping her forearm stopped her. Another chill ran down her spine as she turned around.

“Why are you acting like this? What did I do wrong? Is this about the egg thing? I said I was-"

She stared at him with disgust. Why was he rubbing it in? He knew exactly why she was like this. He had come to her workplace and… A wave of nausea washed over her at the memory. “ _He knows I saw him. I mean, he went to MY workplace to show off his new bed partner."_ Anger boiled inside of her, clouding her thoughts.

“It’s not about the eggs. I just realised I don’t want anything to do with you. You’re a disgusting-“

She was cut off as she saw a woman come up from behind Spike and elbow him.

“Hey!" the strange woman greeted.

A little stunned, Spike turned to see Samantha standing next to him with a huge grin on her face. Somehow, she looked different. His eyes drifted towards her hair and he noticed that, for the first time since he had met her, she had it down. Only then did he realise just how long it was. It fell around her and down to her lower back; each group of auburn threads turning five or six times in large loops until they reached the edge of her white tank top, which now glowed as a result of the lighting in the club. He was taken a bit by surprise, frowning in confusion, but was snapped out of it as she spoke:

“Aren’t you going to introduce us?"

“Ah… Buffy!" he exclaimed in surprise. “This is…." His mind raced as he tried to remember the woman’s name and after a while he realised he didn’t know. He frowned once again, wondering how he could be living with someone without even knowing his or her name. “This is…" he repeated.

“ _Your skanky ho?!"_ Buffy offered in her thoughts, the fake smile never leaving her face.

“Sam!" the woman finally intervened, outstretching her hand and offering a big grin.

Reluctantly, the small blond responded and took her hand, making sure to apply a little of her Slayer strength and only letting go when she heard something snap out of place.

Sam, felt a tear form in the corner of her eye as the pain ran from her hand straight to her spine, but her smile never faded and between clenched teeth she greeted:

“Nice to meet you!"

“Nice to meet you too." Buffy replied much less enthusiastically. ‘ _So you’re the smutty ho Spike’s been humping against the wall.’_ She felt her stomach turn as her mind manipulated the images it had stored and pasted the redhead’s face over the giant question mark it had been working with since that night.

Sam frowned as she got a clear picture of herself being bumped against the wall by Spike’s body coming from the petite blond in front of her. She couldn’t help but cringe at the thought before realising it was not an actual memory but a visualization.

An awkward silence settled between the three as they stood in the middle of the crowd. Eventually, Sam made a move:

“Well, we better get going. It’s getting late and we have to get up early in the morning." She tried to control the smile off her face, as she saw the meaning of her words sink into the petite blond.

“We do?" Spike asked confused.

“Yes, we gotta do that… thing."

“Well, don’t let me keep you from the… thing." Buffy swallowed hard as she pictured what exactly the ‘thing’ was.

Sam cringed as it flashed before her eyes. ‘ _God, don’t you people think of anything besides sex?_ ’ she thought to herself.

“Thing?" The vampire remained oblivious to the on going war around him, his stare going from the redhead to the blond and back again.

“Well, goodnight then." Sam finally said, practically tearing the vampire’s arm off as she hurled him away.

Buffy simply stood there with a tight knot in her stomach, repressing the uncontrollable urge to vomit.

~+~

“THAT was the woman that was in the shop today?" Xander asked in disbelief. The woman who had been in the Magic Box that day didn’t seemed one bit as interesting as the one who had spent the past five minutes talking to them. She had been wearing some old jeans and a large red shirt plus, she had her hair tied up and he had never gotten close enough to see her face.

“Yes." Anya repeated for the third time, sighing.

“S-she seemed nice." Tara offered.

“Yeah, she was – Oh, hey Buffy!" Willow greeted with a smile, but it crumbled the moment she saw the look on her friend’s face.

“What happened?" Xander asked concerned.

“Nothing. I’m just not feeling well. I think I’m gonna throw up."

“Are you ok?" Xander continued his questioning.

“She just said she was gonna puke, she’s not ok, Xander." Anya rolled her eyes.

“I think I’ll head home." Buffy had to lean on the table for support and within instants she had Xander and Willow by her side holding her up.

“Here, we’ll take you." Xander offered.

“What, we’re going home? Already?" Anya protested as she followed the group towards the exit.

~+~

“Will you explain to me what the bloody hell was that all about?" Spike bellowed as he walked after Sam between the gravestones.

“What?" She asked innocently.

“What do you mean ‘what’? The whole ‘thing’ thing… and the looks you two were having." Spike continued to shout after her.

“Nothing. I just wanted to go home. I was tired."

“Tired? We had just gotten there." The vampire stopped dead in his tracks as a light bulb lit up in his mind: “What did you do in the loo?" he asked with a cocked up eyebrow.

“Huh… Is sex permanently branded on your brain?" she questioned in disgust as she pushed the door open and entered the crypt.

“Pretty much, yeah."

“Well, I didn’t jump any waitress in a schoolgirl uniform. What kind of twisted fantasy is that anyway?" She took the stairs two by two and in seconds was laying belly up on the bed. “God, I love this bed!" she sighed relieved as she spread out her arms.

“You bloody well should! Took you long enough to choose it!" he grumbled as he remembered that afternoon.

She made little circles with her legs as they dangled off the bed.

“Now are you gonna tell me, or not?"

“For someone who’s 100 and change, you’re very green, aren’t you? Do you even know anything about girls?" she asked with a smile, but it was wiped off her face as a couple of images flashed before her eyes. “And we’re off to the Playboy Special." She mumbled to herself. “I’m pretty sure you know a lot when it come to the horizontal tango, stud, but when it come to a woman’s mind you’re just as illiterate as a… frog."

“A frog?" His scared eyebrow shot up.

“Sorry. First thing that came to mind. I’m very bad with analogies." She shrugged. “Anyway… Being you’re guardian angel I decided to help you and help myself out in the process. Basically, I plan to get you to stop moping around and picturing that girl 24/7. She’s cute, don’t get me wrong, but I’m more of a Brad Pitt sort of person when it comes to blondes."

“And what is your amazing plan?" He asked sarcastically.

“Make her jealous." She stated simply.

“Jealous? About what?"

“You may not have noticed, but that girl was practically chewing my head off back there." She informed him as she massaged her sore hand. “I think she snapped a ligament out of place, or something." She mumbled to herself.

“She was?"

“Believe me. I got a pretty picture in my head that told me so. The way I see it, you only know what you want when you lose it. You know, like kids and toys."

“Kids and toys?"

“Yes. When a kid gets a brand-new toy he plays with it for hours until he gets sick of it, and throws it away." She started.

“Buffy is the kid and I’m the toy in this intricate analogy of yours, I assume?"

“Yes."

“And I got thrown away?"

“Yes, no offence."

“None taken." Spike shook his head, leaning on the wall and he crossed his arms over his chest as he patiently waited to see where this was going.

“So, when another kid come along – me – and starts to play with it…"

“Hey, no offence but I’m not planning on letting you… ‘ _Play with it_ ’."

“Don’t flatter yourself. I don’t plan to either. I just want her to think I am playing. Anyway, shut up and listen. You’re ruining my story. When the first kid – Buffy – sees the second kid – me – play with the toy, suddenly, it wants it again. The first it being Buffy and the second being you." She added.

“I get it." Spike stood up straight, he was about to leave when he stopped and looked at her. “You’re really lousy at analogies."

She simply shrugged.

 Part VI - Invitation

A chill ran down her spine as the cold water splashed against her flushed face. She looked up and stared at her reflection in the mirror; her mind swirled. A light knock on the door snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Come in." she spoke with a sleepy voice

Tara’s head popped out from behind the white door.

“Hey…" she greeted as she stepped in.

“Hey."

Buffy rubbed the soft fabric of the towel against the wet skin of her face.

“I-I thought you might want this." Tara outstretched her arms handing her a warm cup of hot chocolate.

“Thanks." She nodded, taking the warm mug in her small hands and walking into her room, closely followed by the witch.

“C-Can we talk?" Tara stuttered awkwardly as she stepped into the room.

“Sure." Buffy said with a weak smile, taking a seat on the bed and signalling the tall girl to do the same.

“Thanks." Tara said as she sat down. “I hope you d-don’t mind but… Willow and I are a bit worried about you. You have been so distant… so-“

“Spike and I broke up." Buffy suddenly blurted out.

“Oh… I figured." Tara said showing little surprise.

“I-I mean, I called it all off right after Riley left. I-It was just the right thing to do, you know?" she explained as she set the mug on her nightstand.

“I-If you say so." Tara spoke with her usual soft and understanding tone which made it so easy for Buffy to open up.

“It was." The blond girl said without much resolve, but looking up at Tara she added with a little more conviction: “I know it was."

“Then why are you like this?" the witch hesitated a bit, but was relieved when Buffy didn’t snap. Instead, she simply dropped her gaze to her hands.

She fidgeted nervously with her fingers as she pondered how to say what she wanted to say. Finally, she took a deep breath and, never looking up, she spoke:

“I saw him… at the DoubleMeat Palace… He was with someone… A woman."

“Well, they could just be friends." Tara offered.

Buffy suddenly looked up from her hands and stared straight into Tara’s eyes.

“He was grinding her against the back wall of the DoubleMeat." She set her mouth in a straight line.

“Oh." Tara quipped figuring Spike might have been fighting the woman but, seeing the look on Buffy’s face, realisation came crashing down on her; “Oh!" she repeated a little more loudly, as the sexual connotation of the verb ‘to grind’ sprang to mind. “Oh!"

“Yeah,’oh!’ ! My reaction was more of a ‘ _*Thud* now I’m laying unconscious on the floor_ ’ sort of thing." Buffy tried to seem unaffected by the news but failed as the tears began to swim in her eyes, turning them glassy and bloodshot.

“Oh, Buffy I-I’m sorry!" Tara tried to calm her.

“And tonight I decided to have some fun, you know? Not let the evil creature of the dark get to me? And guess who I find? Spike… With his new skanky ho!" Anger was growing in her and quickly becoming the dominant emotion. “And she was all nice and smiled and… God, I wanted to rip that smug smile off her face!" she hissed between clenched teeth. “And he was staring, gawking at her like she was… You know what? I think she was a man. I mean she has a man’s name. What kind of name is Sam, anyway?"

“Buffy, I-it’s ok to be jealous, you-“

“Jealous? Who’s jealous? I’m not jealous!" The blond said defensively, standing up and beginning to walk in circles as she rambled: “I’m just angry that he had to come to the DoubleMeat and rub it in my face and then act all ‘ _Oh, what are you angry about? What did I do wrong?_ ’ I’ll tell him what he did wrong. That little weasel." She practically growled, fisting her hands as she paced around, causing Tara some unease.

“What did he do wrong? B-besides come to your workplace a-and…" she tried to imagine how to word it and instead decided to just skip that part of her reasoning. “And…" she tilted her head and continued: “…Wh-which I can understand would make you angry…."

“Well, isn’t it enough?" Buffy quipped.

“Enough to get you this angry?" Tara wondered. “Are you sure you’re just angry?"

Buffy stared wide eyed at the woman sitting on her bed and finally stated matter-of-factly, crossing her arms over her chest:

“I’m *not* jealous!"

~+~                      

“She’s jealous!" Spike practically chanted as he hopped onto his sarcophagus.

“Oy, I’m starting to regret ever telling you about that." Sam mumbled from the armchair as she blindly looked at the black and white images flickering on the TV set. She heard him sighing loudly and turned to see a dreamy look on his face. A couple of images coming from the dazed vampire flashed in her mind and she couldn’t help but cringe. “I think I’m gonna be sick." She muttered, wondering which was worst - the highly R rated footage from before or the new and improved Mexican soap opera that now passed before her eyes.

Snapping out of his dreamy haze he noticed the disgusted look she was giving him.

“What?" he asked defensively. Her index finger tapped on her temple and he grumbled: “Well, turn that thing off then."

“I can’t turn if off. It’s kinda like me telling you to not listen when someone’s screaming in your ears." She made a face and returned her attention to the TV.

Spike hopped off the sarcophagus and slowly approached her. Her eyes remained glued to the television as she tried to ignore the vampire who now kneeled on the floor to her right and stared intensely at her. They stayed that way for a few seconds until she snapped and whipped her head around to look back at him.

“What?" she asked annoyed. When she saw the lost little puppy dog look he was giving her she rolled her eyes and tilted her head, spurring him on to tell her what was going on.

“When are we going out again?" he practically sinsonged the words.

She tried hard not to smile, working hard at keeping her cool exterior.

“And why do you want to go out? I thought you liked staying at home… moping."

“You cured me." He quipped.

“Right." She said with a mocking tone.

“Ah… come on!" he practically begged tilting his head as his lip jutted out for a pout.

“You can put that lip back in place. It’s not working its magic today." Sam lied.

He frowned and the pout grew.

“You have to understand we can’t overexpose this thing. If you do, the jealousy is just gonna turn into pain or anger, which is bad. You still have to grasp the concept of subtlety and suggestion. You wouldn’t believe what those two things together can do." She took a french-fry from the bag she was holding in her hands and popped it into her mouth, turning to face the TV.

Spike began to protest, but found it impossible as she quickly stuck a fry in his open mouth and said with a shrewd tone:

“Subtlety and suggestion."

Spike sulked and resigned to munching on his fry.

~+~

“Buffy! I’m home!" Dawn bellowed closing the door behind her and hoping her way upstairs. Getting no answer, she repeated louder: “Buffy!"

“I heard you the first time." She grumbled, dragging her feet as she exited the bathroom.

“Are you ready?" the young teenager asked with a huge grin.

“Do I have a choice?"

“Boy, you’re in a lousy mood today for a change…" Dawn noted sarcastically.

Buffy mumbled something unintelligible under her breath as she walked into her room and got her bag.

In a few minutes, the two sisters were out the door and heading for the mall. Dawn practically hopped the whole way there.

“So, what do you think we should get her?" she asked a little too enthusiastic.

“What are you so happy about? It’s just a bachelor party and it’s next Saturday, I don’t know why we have to buy a present right now." Buffy continued oozing her ‘good mood’ as she entered the large department store.

“Because you’re working tomorrow and the rest of the week and I have classes. Our schedules clash." Dawn explained matter-of-factly as she stared at a shop’s window.

“Right…"

“How about that?" The younger girl asked pointing at a strangely shaped mug.

Buffy cringed shaking her head in disapproval.

“Well, what about this?" Dawn pointed at another option and got the same reaction from her sister.

This went on for a while until the teenager had enough and decided to protest:

“Come on, Buffy. You’re suppose to choose with me, not simply moan and groan and be ‘negativity queen’."

“I’m not ‘negativity queen’?" Buffy complained.

“Yeah, cause you’re so enthusiastic about this whole wedding thing."

“Since when did you become so cynical?"

“Right about the same time you became an anger ball."

“Anger ball?" Buffy cocked up an eyebrow.

“I’m going through a Ryan Philippe phase." Dawn admitted a bit embarrassed.

“You’ve seen that movie one too many times."

“Oh, but he looks sooooo cute and cuddly and…" Dawn noticed the disgusted looked her sister was giving her and cut her drooling short. “Fine, let’s just find something for Anya."

~+~

The vampire turned on his sarcophagus as he tried desperately to ignore the sound of longs nails tapping on wood, but the more he tried to block it out the louder it seemed to get.

“WILL YOU QUIT DOING THAT? I’m trying to sleep here." He finally snapped, sitting up straight and staring at the woman who sat on the armchair.

“Sorry." She said with a small voice.

“Thank you." He grumbled laying back down to sleep.

A few minutes went by and the vampire actually believed he was going to get some shut-eye when a strange blipping sound filled the crypt, after a few seconds he recognized the series of off key rings as notes of Beethoven’s 5th.

“What the bloody fu-“ He stopped in mid sentence as he saw Sam standing up and begin to speak apparently to no one in particular as she brought her hand to her ear; the annoying sound disappearing.

He waited a few seconds and soon Sam dropped her hand. She pressed a button on the object she held and another single screeching sound was heard. She looked up and gave him a wicked smile.

“You have a cell phone? Since when do you have a cell phone?" he asked confused.

“Since my shopping spree. I always wanted to have one." She quickly explained, the impious grin never leaving her lips.

“What?" he questioned. The way she was smiling gave him the feeling that he really didn’t want to know the answer to his question.

“You should drop to your knees right now and kiss the floor I’m walking on." She nodded as she spoke.

“And that would be because…?"

“I’m going to a party." She announced matter-of-factly.

“We are?" he asked, not sure if it was good or bad news.

“Not ‘we’, *I* am!" She corrected.

“And that would affect me because…?" During the few days he had known her, he had realised that the best way to get things out of her quickly was by making incomplete sentences in the form of a question that she would have to complete.

“Because said party is at your true love’s house." The grin on her face grew while Spike’s face seemed to crunch up, every muscle contracting and pulling in separate directions as he began to choke.

“Wh-“ cough. “Wh-“ cough, cough.

“I’m assuming the question is ‘what’. Am I right? Nod if it is." She said.

He nodded fanatically.

“Ok. Well, Anya just called me…"

“You…" cough. “You…" cough."

“I thought vampire’s couldn’t choke?" she asked annoyed as his coughing fit was ruining her moment of triumph. 

After few seconds, Spike calmed down and asked, ignoring her question:

“You know Anya?"

“And Alexander, and Willow, and Tara. Tara was nice, shy, but nice. Got very pretty pictures from her head. She’s sweet, she really likes Wil-“

“How?" The vampire interrupted.

“I met them at the Bronze. Willow and Tara, I mean. I met Anya at her shop, along with Xander, but he didn’t remember me." She pouted for a second but then added: “But after last night… I’m sure he’ll remember." The wicked grin returned to her lips.

“You and Xander?" The vampire was totally confused now as well as a little disgusted.

“Oh, God no!!" Sam denied vehemently shaking her head. “Just the…" she tapped on her temple. “I got when he saw me. Believe me, that man’s totally smitten with Anya. Anyway, I went into a shop yesterday to buy some candles and incense sticks to get the horrible stench out of this crypt…"

“I liked that stench. It was my stench, now all my clothes smell like jasmine." Spike used the opportunity to protest.

“Well, I like jasmine, so get used to it. Moving on… I started talking to Anya and realised she was a friend of Buffy’s." she tapped her finger on her temple once more.

“And this information just slipped your mind, right? Why didn’t you tell me?"

“Because you were too busy grilling me about the fact that I now have a pulse, remember?" Sam complained, before continuing: “So, at the Bronze, I bumped into her when I went to the ladies room. We chatted about her engagement and the fact that it was taking forever. Xander is really… Actually, no! All of you are. All men are just-“

“Can we skip the ‘ _men have the emotional skills of an amoeba and are the most insensitive creatures on the face of the planet_ ’ speech?" Spike interrupted a bit annoyed at her babbling.

“This is why you and *her* aren’t together. You people don’t talk. You have a problem, you do one of two things: ignore it and boink each other till one of you drops senseless or ignore it and beat each other up till one of you drops senseless." Sam finished her speech to find a very annoyed Spike looking back at her. “Ok, fine. Geez… We talked, I gave her my phone number, she told me to come meet her friends, I met her friends, I saw you and little blondie on the dance floor and interrupted. That about sums it up. Oh, wait, no. Anya just called me, inviting me to go to her bachelor party next Saturday. She reminded me to buy her something expensive." Sam took a long breath as she finished.

“You’re going to Buffy’s house next Saturday?" Spike finally asked.

“And I’m going to make your girlfriend green with envy while being extra nice to her, which will make her nuts, since I’m not giving her any excuse to hate me, besides the fact that she thinks I’m boinking you." Sam summed up her plan as she dropped onto the armchair. “Oh, that reminds me. I have to buy something to wear."

“You’re buying something to wear? What about the pile of clothes downstairs?" Spike asked in disbelief.

“I need green envy causing material!" Sam announced turning on the TV.

 Part VII – Bachelor Party (Part I)  

Spike tapped his fingers over the small bench he was sitting on while he stared at the closed curtains in front of him.

“Are you done yet?" he asked for the 4th time in five minutes.

“If I was, I wouldn’t be cooped up in here, now would I?" Sam’s voice hovered over the curtains to reach his ears.

“Will you just get on with it?" He grumbled as he felt his empty stomach turn. He dropped his head on his hands and sighed heavily, staring at the tiled floor.

“What do you think?"

He looked up to see her. She wore a short summer dress, which hovered just above her knees. He observed her for a few seconds, taking in the contrast between the random patterns of light brown and yellow flowers stamped over the light fabric and the milky white emanating from her exposed legs. Suddenly, she moved to disappear behind the heavy curtains.

“Hey, I-“

“I don’t like it. Too ‘ _I’m an innocent little church girl_ ’." She interrupted matter-of-factly.

“It wasn’t bad." He whinged as he was growing increasingly frustrated.

She had walked through the store taking practically all the clothes she’d found along the way and walked straight into the changing room. That had been over an hour ago and she had only shown him four outfits so far. He was pretty sure there were still about ten to go.

He sighed and resigned to waiting, standing up and pacing back and forth in circles. Ten minutes later, she was standing in front of him – tight leather pants clung to her thighs and a slivery tank top hung over her chest by two thin straps.

He swallowed noticeably, but before he could say anything she was back inside.

“What?" He asked exasperated.

“Too **‘** _ravage me now_ **’**." She explained simply.

“It’s not too ‘ _ravage me now’_." He lied.

“Spike, I got a flash from you. I know the first thing that ran through your head." She responded, her nose wrinkling up as the images refused to abandon her mind.

“Sorry…" the vampire apologized a bit embarrassed as he walked back and took his seat.

Four complete outfits later, she walked out of the changing room, this time with a long worn out dark blue denim skirt, which hung low on her waist, and a simple red linen sweater. The edges of its sleeves opened up slightly, just like bellbottom pants, and geometrical Arabic shapes were sewn into them with a white thread. The same intricate pattern bordered the ‘v’ neckline that exposed her sharp collarbones and the ashen colour of her neck.

As she had done previously, she prepared to turn around but stopped as she felt a strong cold hand gripping her arm.

“It’s fine!" Spike practically hissed frustratingly. “It’s not angelic, it’s not smutty, it’s not stuck up, it’s not simple, not complicated and it doesn’t make you itch. It’s fine. Now let’s go!" he ordered.

As she was about to make some remark he gave her a deadly look and she pouted, frowning.

“Party pooper." She whined as she walked behind the curtain to change back into her normal jean and sweater outfit.

~+~

“Anya, will you just stop for a second… You’re making me dizzy…" Xander begged as he practically ran after his fiancée. She was like the energizer bunny… “ _Better not get bunnies into the mix…_ " the young man thought to himself as he finally caught up with her.

“I can’t stop! There is just so much stuff to do till the wedding…" she mumbled as she made a mental list of what was needed. “I have to pick up the invitations and mail them out today, then there is the florist; have to make sure the woman gets the right flowers, then there’s…"

Xander zoned off and simply nodded; giving her the impression he was actually listening when, suddenly, he saw her – the woman from the Bronze. Anya’s friend.

“Hey, isn’t that Samantha?" He asked.

“What? Where?" the ex-demon looked around, failing to spot the redhead.

“There, standing in front of that shoe store, next to… Spike?"

“Oh!" Anya was off, running towards Sam, arms waving around, the shopping bags she was carrying flying in every direction as she literarily ran over the people who were standing in her way. Xander remained perfectly still, not moving an inch as his brain still tried to digest the information his eyes were providing him.

~+~

“Sam! Sam!"

The young redhead turned around to see where all the shouting was coming from and couldn’t help smiling as she saw the ex-demon coming her way.

“Hey!" she greeted when Anya was finally standing in front of her.

“Hey! Hey, Spike!" she dispensed him a second of her attention, but quickly returned her gaze to the redhead in front of her. “What are you doing here?"

“Shopping." Sam answered pointing towards the bags piled up in Spike’s hands.

“Did you buy something for me?" Anya asked without any embarrassment.

Sam smiled at the woman standing in front of her. It was amazing. She was probably the only human being that said exactly what was on her mind. Before the images had a chance to flash in Sam’s mind, Anya was already blabbing everything out. It was really uncanny, but that was exactly what she liked about this hyperactive woman.

Sam was snagged out of her thoughts when she saw Xander approaching.

“Samantha… Spike." The young man gave each an acknowledging nod.

“Hey!" Sam greeted with a grin.

“Harris. Out with the Mrs?" the vampire asked.

“Last minute wedding arrangements." Xander explained.

“So about this store you told me…" Anya started and soon the two women were in a world of their own, talking about clothing, shoes, flowers… basically, extremely boring things that left the two men awkwardly staring at each other in a painful silence. Realising the conversation between the two women was going to take sometime, Xander decided to risk it:

“So… You know Samantha?"

“Sam? Yeah." Spike said simply, not willing to disclose anymore information about it.

“From where?"

“We met at the Bronze." The vampire smiled inwardly realising that the young man in front of him was dying to know more about it.

“Really? So what are you doing with her now?" Xander tried to make it sound like he was just making conversation but failed miserably at it.

“Not much… Holding her bags, basically." Spike stated, holding up the pile of bags.

“I didn’t mean that."

“Well, you asked me what I was doing with her *now*." Spike gave him one of his trademark smirks.

Sam choked back a laugh When she suddenly got an image of Xander wringing Spike’s neck.

“Very funny… ha-ha."

“You wanna know something? Ask. Don’t expect me to dish out, I’m not one to kiss and tell." Spike said, his scared eyebrow now high on his forehead.

“Arg…" Sam groaned, covering her mouth when she got a highly xxx image from Xander.

“Are you ok?" Spike asked, the smirk never leaving his lips figuring the reason for Sam’s sudden sickness.

“I don’t think I feel so good." Sam admitted shooting Spike an angry look. “We better go home, Spike."

At that Xander’s eyes widened. ‘ _Go home? She’s staying with him? How…? When…?_ ’, but before he had the chance to ask, Sam and Anya had already said their goodbyes and the redhead was walking away, with Spike alongside her.

“Don’t forget about Saturday." Anya shouted after the couple.

“Don’t worry! Wouldn’t miss it for the world." Sam bellowed back. When she was sure she was out of their sight she slapped Spike across the arm.

“Hey! What was that for?"

“I’m not one to kiss and tell." She said with a mocking tone, imitating perfectly his British accent as she made a face.

“Wha’? It’s true." the vampire complained with an innocent look on his face.

“Do you know the flash I got from that man? I think I’m gonna throw up!" she sighed, walking a bit faster.

The vampire smiled as he increased his pace to fall into stride with her.

“Where are we going?"

“To get Anya’s present. I know exactly what she wants." Sam said never looking at the man walking next to her.

“She told you?"

“No, I got a flash." Sam explained as she entered a lingerie store.

~+~

Willow and Tara sat on the mattress as they watched Buffy punch half-heartedly into the punching bag Xander was holding for her while she trained.

“So, do you know who Anya and I met yesterday at the mall?" Xander asked the tree girls. “Samantha!"

“Who’s Samantha?" Buffy questioned as she administered another blow.

“She’s that girl we saw at the Bronze on Saturday. Remember? I told you about her. Anya’s friend?" Willow answered.

“Oh, yeah." Buffy nodded as her foot came high to kick the upper edge of the bag.

“How is she? Is she still coming to Anya’s party? Maybe you can meet her, Buffy."

The Slayer shrugged and continued throwing her meek punches.

“Sure."

“Oh, I think you’re gonna wanna meet her, alright." Xander said with a heavy ‘ _I know something you don’t know_ ’ tone.

Buffy gave him a frown and he continued his report of the day’s events:

“She was at the mall, guess who was with her…" he started and then added with emphases: “…carrying her bags!"  When he got no answer from the three, he finally added with wide eyes: “Spike!"

Buffy stopped punching the bag for a second, sending Tara a look, as the pieces in her mind clicked into place: Spike with a hottie at the Bronze the same night as the guys met another girl, apparently of stunning beauty. Spike’s girl was called Sam, which was short for… Samantha!

“You saw Spike with a girl?" Willow asked as she shifted on the mattress while Tara remained frozen at her side; her wide eyes now glued on the Slayer.

Buffy tried to mask her surprise by returning to her punching exercises.

“He was carrying her shopping bags! That’s major commitment sign! It’s just like in high school, when you ask a girl if you can carry her books. If she says yes, you automatically know you’re in. It’s the unspoken code of dating." Xander explained. He held onto the punching bag as Buffy’s punches seemed to grow in intensity.

“Well, did you ask Spike about it?" Willow questioned with a gaping mouth, totally immersed in the news her friend was giving her. So immersed, that she completely ignored Tara’s altered behaviour. She held her breath as she closely watched the Slayer’s reaction to every word that was said.

“Yeah! And he was all monosyllabic about it. Like he didn’t want me to know about it." Xander stumbled a bit as Buffy seemed to suddenly be putting all of her strength into the training session. The more he spoke, the stronger her punches were. “When I tried to know a bit more, he was all like: ‘I’m not one to kiss and tell.’… Ouch!" Xander groaned as one of Buffy’s blows seemed to punch through the padded material and hit him, causing him to stumble back. “Careful there, buffster."

Buffy didn’t say a thing, merely continued her exercises as Xander took his place again, behind the punching bag.

“And what else?" Willow asked oozing curiosity, completely oblivious to Buffy’s altered behaviour.

“Willow, maybe we shouldn’t…" Tara said in a low voice, but was interrupted by Xander.

“And then she suddenly started feeling queasy and he was all worried, you know? All, ‘Are you ok, luv?’ and ‘Is there anything I can do’?" Xander said, deciding it was best to embellish the truth, make his story a bit more interesting. As a result he felt another strong punch go through the bag, but this time he was able to stand his ground, even though his stomach was starting to get sore. “And then… And this is the REAL news, she said :’We better go home.’!"

Xander didn’t know what hit him as he was now laying belly up on the floor, staring at the ceiling, a throbbing pain at the side of his head. Willow was kneeling next to him, a worried look on her face.

“Are you ok, Xander?" the redhead asked.

“What happened?" The young man asked as he blinked wildly, trying to focus his gaze on his best friend’s face.

“Buffy accidentally missed the bag and kicked you in the head. You were out of a couple of minutes."

“Oh! My head!" Xander said as he brought his hand to cover his ear.

“I’m sorry, Xander!" Buffy said with little sympathy in her voice. “It was an accident."

“It’s ok. Don’t worry."

Buffy felt someone tug at her shirt. She turned to see a concerned Tara looking back at her.

“We need to talk." The witch said, pulling her towards the back door.

When they were in the alley, out of the training room and away from Willow and Xander, Buffy asked:

“What did you want to talk to me about?" Pretending nothing was happening.

“You have to talk to him. If this is bothering you, you have to." For the first time since she had met the witch, Buffy heard nothing but determination and certainty in Tara’s tone, not a hint of doubt or her usual shyness.

“I already apologized. He’ll be fine." Buffy said with a fake smile, that begged Tara not to push the issue, but she didn’t oblige:

“You know what I’m talking about, Buffy. You need to talk to Spike about this."

“About what?" Buffy continued to avoid the subject.

“If you don’t tell him the truth, you’ll lose him." were Tara’s last words as she opened the door and walked back into the training room, leaving a stunned Buffy behind.

~+~

The week went by in a flash and then, there it was – Saturday night, staring her in the face. All the girls were gathered downstairs, all except… her, the redhead. Buffy’s stomach turned and she let out a deep grunt, taking off the shirt she was wearing and throwing it in the rapidly growing pile on her bed.

“Nothing looks good, damn it!" she protested as she walked towards her closet and opened it to examine it. “They’re all old."

A knock on the door, brought her back to reality.

“Buffy! Hurry up! It’s the bachelor party, not the actual wedding." Dawn’s voice bellowed from the other side of the door.

“I’m… coming!" Buffy answered as she took a white tank top and put it on.

“You said that half an hour ago. I want to give Anya our present."

“I’m done!" Buffy said as she exited the room to find her sister standing in front of her, looking at her from head to toe. “What?"

Buffy wore tight black leather pants and an equally tight white tank top that showed off her perfectly shaped breasts. Long spaghetti earrings dropped from her ears and caressed her neck, which was exposed as she had her hair pinned up in a bundle on the back of her head. Raven leather boots finished the ensemble.

“Buffy, it’s a bachelor party. Why are you ‘dress to kill’?" Dawn enquired with a frown.

“I feel dressy today."

“Whatever. Do you have Anya’s present?"

Buffy held up the small box in her hands and the two sisters hopped down the stairs.

“Buffy!" Willow quipped when she saw her best friend coming down the stairs. Suddenly, she felt very underdressed for the occasion. “Why are you dressed up?"

“I’m not dressed up." Buffy said matter-of-factly.

“If you say so."

The three walked into the living room to find Tara and Anya sitting on the sofa.

“A-Are we going out? I-I thought we had decided not to go to the male s-striptease show." Tara asked a bit confused when she noticed Buffy’s outfit.

“We’re not." Willow reassured her, giving her a ‘don’t ask’ look.

A ringing sound filled the living room and Anya immediately jumped up to attention.

“It’s her. Finally! I get to open my presents."

“I’ll get it." Dawn said, walking towards the door. As she opened it she was greeted by a smiling redhead and someone standing next to her who’s identity was concealed by the large box in his hands.

“Hey, you must be Dawn! I’m Sam!" the woman outstretched her hand and Dawn gladly took it, shaking it.

“Come in! We were waiting for you. Anya is dying to open her presents. Don’t tell Xander, but I think she’s only marrying him for the gifts." Dawn said with a smile as she let the young woman in, followed by the man. “Hey, Spike!" the younger Summer’s girl greeted.

“Hey, nibblet. Care to tell me where I can leave this stuff?" The vampire asked.

“In the living room." Dawn pointed.

“Hey, Samantha!" Willow greeted standing up and shaking her hand.

“Call me, Sam!" the woman smiled before turning her attention to Anya. “Hey, Anya! Congratulations!"

“Is that my present?" the ex-demon asked walking up to Spike and Sam.

“Yep, that’s it."

“OH, it’s big!" she noted with huge grin

“Yeah, and heavy! Where do I put it?" Spike grumbled.

“Here." Dawn offered pointing at the floor.

“Finally!" The vampire let out an unneeded gulp of air, but he soon caught his breath as his eyes found the Slayer’s. She looked amazing and his body immediately reacted to the tight leather pants and white tank top. Suddenly, there was very little room left in his denims and the zipper painfully bit into his tender skin. He shook his head and decided to ignore her as his gaze shot across the room, looking at everything except the hot little Slayer on the other side of the couch.

In the meantime, Sam pushed back the pictures that flashed in her eyes and tried not to make a disgusted face as she turned to greet Tara.

“Hey! Tara… right?"

“Y-yes." The witch confirmed shyly.

“And Buffy… Hey!"

“Hey!" The Slayer greeted dryly.

“You know each other?" Willow asked.

“Yeah, we met at the Bronze the same night I met you guys." Sam explained.

Willow’s eyes widened and she shot Buffy a ‘we have to talk’ look.

“So… Can I open my presents now?" Anya asked with the anxiety of a ten year old kid on Christmas day.

“Not yet." Dawn noted tilting her head towards the only male person in the room. “No men allowed, Spike. Sorry!"

“Just came to drop off Sam. Don’t think I could take a night of watching sappy girlie movies, while dyeing my hair and doing my nails with you lot." He answered as he passed the threshold of the house, Sam and Dawn holding the door open for him while Buffy and Anya stood behind them.

“Pick me up at…" Sam looked back at Anya, who was excitedly holding up a hand wide open. “…five?"

“Will do, luv. Be careful." Spike said with a smile as he saw the look on Buffy’s face from the corner of his eyes before turning around to leave.

Dawn closed the door behind him and both she and Sam turned to face Buffy and Anya. The redhead’s eyes widened as she got a painful image from the Slayer.

“Let the fun begin!" Dawn announced completely oblivious to the deadly look Buffy was sending Sam.

Part VIII – Bachelor Party (Part II)

With wide eyes, Anya took the small box and hastily tore the wrapper off. Her huge grin crumbled a bit when she saw its content…

“A box?" Anya asked confused.

“It’s a music box." Dawn stepped in with a huge grin, not reading the disappointment in the ex-demon’s eyes.

“Oh… Good. I like it."

For the first time, Sam saw Anya repressing her real thoughts.

“Thanks."

Tara shyly elbowed Willow, pointing toward the back of the couch.

“Oh… Yes." The witch exclaimed standing up, reaching for a beautifully wrapped box and handing it to Anya. “This is from me and… Tara."

A slight shade of red took over the pale complexion of both girls as Buffy and Dawn gave them a look.

“You bought the present together?" Dawn asked with a huge grin on her face.

Willow nodded and Dawn was about start a thorough interrogation session, when a light pinch from her sister told her it was best not to force the issue.

In the meantime, Anya was so wrapped up in opening her present she hadn’t even rationalized what buying a gift together meant in the Wiccas’ relationship. The ex-demon entertained herself as she furiously attacked the piece of paper that stood between her and her present. Finally, she managed to destroy the package, leaving only its content.

She tilted her head as she was faced with another rectangular box.

“You bought me a music box too?" The disappointment evident in her voice as she opened the wooden casing. She found it was divided into various little square compartments, each holding an assortment of aromatic herbs. On the edge of the wood that separated each compartment there was a bronze bar with the name of the herb delicately carved into it. “What’s this?"

“Those are powerful herbs that are said to be very helpful in…" Willow blushed a bit as she tried to explain. “You know…"

“This is natural grass?" Anya blurted out.

“W-Well if you put it that way… I-It’s actually more than that. It’s said that they serve various functions besides… that one." Willow uttered.

“I like it!" The demon quipped truthfully, before adding: "Even though Xander doesn’t need it. You know this one time he asked me to strap him-“

Sam cringed at the flash she got and sighed in relief when Buffy intervened as she covered Dawn’s ears:

“I don’t think we need to know about that."

“Ok, one more to go!" Anya cried over excitedly as she stood up and strode towards the large box at the edge of the room.

It wasn’t wrapped in a fancy bright paper as the previous two presents had been. It was a simple card box. After some struggle she managed to open it and found a large trunk inside.

“Yey… a trunk…" Anya quipped truly disappointed.

Not realising it, Buffy smiled as she grasped that hers wasn’t the worst present.

“Open it." Sam suggested with a smile.

Reluctantly, the ex-demon kneeled in front of the chest and opened it using the key that was stuck in the lock. She gasped as she pulled the heavy wooden lid and saw a black leather corset staring back at her. Next to it were two knee high leather boots.

“Oh, my God! This is exactly what I wanted!!" Anya cried out as she picked up the first item and pressed it against her chest. “How did you know?"

“I guessed." Sam lied smiling as she shrugged.

“Oh my God! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!" The ex-demon threw herself into Sam’s unprepared arms nearly causing her to fall to the floor due to the force of impact.

“You’re… welcome." Sam managed to say as she was released from the deadly grip. “There are a couple of other things in there…"

Before the redhead could finish her sentence, Anya was kneeling on the floor, going through the trunk.

“Oh, a whip… and handcuffs and…

“…but I think you should go through them later. It’s kinda kinky." Sam finished her sentence when she saw the deadly look Buffy was giving her.

“And…" Anya continued oblivious to the situation.

“Anya!" Buffy called out as she slammed the chest’s lid down.

“What?"

Buffy tilted her head toward Dawn, who was already feeling very fed up with the usual routine that cut her off from all the fun.

~+~

“I want some more…"

Kirsten Dunst’s frail voice filled the room as the girls sat in front of the TV, three large bowls of popcorn distributed between them. Suddenly, a ringing sound filled the room. Awkwardly, Sam stood up, taking her cell-phone and heading towards the hall.

“Hello?" Sam whispered into the small device.

“It’s me."

“You who?" Sam decided to annoy the vampire on the other side of the line.

“Spike." The vampire practically groaned.

“Oh… Spike. What do you want?" the redhead asked in a low voice as she peeked into the living room to see Buffy giving her a look.

“Nothing." The vampire lied,

“Nothing?" Sam cocked up an eyebrow.

“Well, just wanted to know how you’re doing?"

“How *I’m* doing, or how a certain blond is doing?" Sam went straight to the point.

“Well…"

“Oh, you’re pathetic." Sam sighed.

“Hey!" Spike protested on the other side of the line.

“It’s true. You’re probably at home trying to figure out exactly what is going on here."

“I am not!" The vampire tried to sound convincing but failed. After a few second of silence he asked: “Is she… jealous, yet?"

“Right now she’s craning her neck to hear who I’m talking to, plus I’ve been getting some extremely painful images from her! All ‘n’ all I’d say the plan’s going great – she hates my guts!"

“Good." The satisfaction was obvious in his voice.

“Can I go now?" Sam groaned as she realised she had just missed another yummy Brad Pitt scene.

“Yes. Don’t-“

Before the vampire could finish Sam pressed the off button of the cell phone disconnecting him. Quietly she made her way back.

Ten minutes later…

“Ring, ring, ring…."

Sam was up and in the hall once more.

“What?!" she asked exasperated. “You’re making me miss brooding Brad Pitt."

“Huh…?"

“What do you want?" she exhaled loudly.

“Just to know what’s going on."

“Nothing, in the past ten minutes."

Buffy sat in her spot on the armchair with Dawn sitting at her feet. Her eyes were focussed on the screen but that was about all the attention she was dispensing the TV; all her senses were directed at the redhead whispering in the hall. She strained to hear, but it was impossible, even with her Slayer powers, especially since the torrential rain had started outside.

“I guess we are going to have a storm, huh?" She asked but got no answer as the four women were completely engulfed in the plot, even though they had seen it about a dozen times. She could understand Dawn and Anya’s interest – Brad Pit and Tom Cruise were a very good reason to watch it - but what about Willow and Tara?

As she looked from the corner of her eyes she got her answer. When the movie had started they sat on opposite sides of the couch, with Dawn sitting between them. Eventually, she had decided it was more comfortable to watch the movie on the floor with Sam, closer to the screen and now Willow was sitting on the edge of the sofa and Tara sat next to her - her head leaning on the redhead’s shoulder, their hands carefully intertwined.

Buffy couldn’t help but smile, it was good to see the two girls had solved their problems. Her trail of thought was interrupted as Sam walked into the room and took her place on the floor, leaning on the couch. The Slayer’s stomach suddenly turned as she noticed the smile on the redhead’s face. What was she smiling about? Was Spike responsible for it? Had he said something funny? The questions whirled in her mind and the pain in her gut grew. She was snapped out of her maddening suppositions when Dawn’s arms stretched out in front of her.

“Ah…" She yawned. “I never get sick of watching that movie."

Buffy looked towards the TV screen to see the titles rolling; behind it a bird’s eye view of the San Francisco Bridge.

“If only vampires actually looked like that…" Willow sighed causing Tara to immediately sit up straight and shoot her a deadly look. However, it didn’t last long as Sam’s next remark gripped her attention:

“Well Spike is sort of like that. I mean, he’s not Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise, but he’s got something going for him." Sam said absentmindedly.

A sudden silence was felt as the room looked like a living picture. Everyone stood perfectly still, staring at the redhead, including Dawn who held a piece of popcorn half an inch from her mouth. The only exception was Anya, as she remained unaltered looking for something:

“Who has the popcorn?" she asked the frozen audience.

“You-you know Spike’s a-a vampire?" Willow broke the silence.

“Well… Yeah!" Sam admitted, not understanding the group’s reaction.

“A-and you’re living with him?" It was Tara’s turn to speak.

“Yep." The redhead answered automatically, as she stood up and took a hand full of popcorn out of the bowl Dawn was holding in her lap.

“Oh, there it is!" Anya exclaimed taking the basin from the brunette.

Buffy seemed to finally snap out of her gawking daze:

“You’re living with a vampire and you’re not worried about it?"

“He can’t hurt me." Sam explained pointing to the back of her head and adding: “Chip and all."

“But he’s a vampire!" Buffy insisted.

“And the problem would be?" Sam asked.

“Well… He can… He…" The Slayer struggled to come up with a reason. “He…"

“There is nothing he can do." Sam paused and saw her chance. With a very suggestive tone she added with a wicked grin: “Well… at least nothing bad."

Buffy’s jaw fell to her chest as a flush brushed over Tara and Willow’s pale complexions. The Slayer was about to say something when Anya, who was still out of the loop, interrupted:

“Well, what’s next?"

~+~

The sound of violent raindrops hitting the shutters served as background as the girls sat around watching TV. Buffy looked around for the strange redhead. She was probably still in the kitchen with Willow and Dawn. Sighing, she stood from the couch to go check it out. Loud giggling was heard as she approached.

“Spike let you do that?" Dawn asked amazed.

Sam nodded looking at the other redhead in the room who was almost coughing her lungs out.

“God… I nearly…" cough. “Choked…".

“Are you ok?" Sam asked a bit concerned as she patted the witch’s back.

“I’m fine. Just…. Have to remember laughing and drinking at the same time is not a good combo."

“It never is." Sam smiled, looking up and finally noticing the Slayer standing on the threshold. “Hey!"

“Hey…" Buffy greeted walking into the kitchen. “What were you guys talking about?"

“Sam made Spike…" Dawn started but realising the story was just too long to tell she shook her head. “Nothing… you wouldn’t get it."

The brunette jumped off the counter where she was sitting.

“Why wouldn’t I?" A hint of hurt evident in the blonde’s voice.

“It’s just a long story…" Sam said yawning as she walked after Dawn into the living room, leaving Willow and Buffy alone in the kitchen.

“So… You knew Sam and you didn’t tell us?" Willow asked as the two girls were out of sight.

“I didn’t realise she was the same person you had met. I thought she was just one of Spike’s… things." Buffy tried to sound nonchalant.

“Well, she is definitely not a… thing."

“What do you mean?" Buffy eyes widened for a second.

“She’s living with him, so I doubt it’s just a thing." Willow explained as she popped the last bit of  popcorn into her mouth before heading for the sink.

“It doesn’t mean anything."

“He bought her a bed, Buffy!" The witch argued as she washed the dirty bowl.

The blonde’s heart suddenly leaped out of her chest. “He bought her a bed?"

“Yep. King-sized." Willow widened her eyes to emphasize what she was saying and didn’t even notice the hurt look on her friend’s face as she continued to speak: “I’m happy for him. Finally finding someone, I mean. I guess he’s finally over his obsession with you, huh?"

Buffy felt her heart shrivel up in her chest at the redhead’s words, her eyes became glassy with tears, but as soon as Willow turned around to face her the mask was back on and she spoke with a plastic smile on her face:

“Thank God!"

~+~

Buffy drifted around the living room, picking up scattered glasses and cups.

“Why can’t I dye my hair?" Dawn pouted as she walked after her sister.

“Because you’re too young…" Buffy sighed as she answered the question for the third time that night.

Everyone was already half asleep, Tara and Willow had gone up to bed a few minutes before, leaving a sleeping Sam on the couch and a dazed Anya flipping channels while she cleaned up.

“You were dyeing your hair when you were her age." Anya noted from her spot on the armchair.

“Yeah, see!" Dawn said triumphantly pointing towards the ex-demon.

 “Shh… You’ll wake up Sam." The Slayer scolded before turning to Anya, widening her eyes and making an angry face.

Dawn’s lower lip jutted out as her sister faced her again.

“Fine… Well talk about it tomorrow. Now it’s time to go to bed."

A huge smile lit up Dawn’s face as she hopped her way into the kitchen after Buffy.

“Thanks, Buffy!"

“Go up to bed." The blond ordered softly as she put the cups in the sink.

“What about Sam, is she going to sleep on the couch?" Dawn asked.

“Well, Spike said he’d pick her up." Buffy looked up at the watch hanging on the wall. It read 6.15. Her eyes drifted toward the tempest outside and added: “I guess with the storm out there he’s not coming."

“Oh, can she sleep in my room?" Dawn asked giddily.

“I thought you were sleeping with Anya?"

“I’d rather share the bed with Sam. Don’t wanna risk a night of Xander sex stories." Dawn explained as she swallowed hard at the painful idea.

“I guess you’re right. I’ll sleep with Anya." Buffy cringed at the thought as she walked into the living room.

Anya was idly flipping through the channels while Sam slept peacefully on the sofa.

“Anya…" Buffy whispered signalling her.

The ex-demon stood up and dropped the remote on the armchair, walking towards Buffy and Dawn.

“What?" Anya whispered back.

“Change of sleeping arrangements. Spike’s not coming so, Sam will probably stay here. You’ll be bunking with me, and she’ll sleep with Dawn."

“Not fair, I want to bunk with Sam." Anya pouted as Dawn’s tongue shot out for a second in a mocking way, before climbing up the stairs; the ex-demon following her close behind. Buffy sighed as she looked at the woman on the couch:

“Why does everyone want to sleep with her? What’s so special about her?"

She was about to walk into the room and wake up Sam, when a sharp, persistent knock was heard on the door. As she opened it a soaked bleached vampire greeted her.

“Are you gonna let me in or am I supposed to stand here till the sun comes up?" Spike asked with an annoyed tone.

Shaking her head as if she had just woken up she moved away from the door, letting him in.

He stood soaking wet in front of her and she couldn’t help but stare. He looked so yummy when he was wet. “ _Not yummy, never yummy!"_ Buffy mentally scolded herself. He ran his hand through his drenched platinum hair as he took off his duster.

“What are you doing here?" Buffy finally managed to ask.

“I came to pick up Sam. Where is she?" He looked around as he spoke. Eventually, his eyes landed on the woman curled up on the couch.

“She fell a sleep." Buffy stated the obvious as she watched him squat next to the redhead.

“Luv, wake up." His voice was smooth as his hand came to brush away a rebel strand that fell over her pale face.

Buffy felt as if someone had just punched her in the stomach, an acid taste in the back of her mouth, as something seemed to crawl up her oesophagus. She shook the pain away and spoke quickly as she walked out of the room:

“I-I’ll get you a towel to dry up."

~+~

With shaky hands she dug into the drawer taking out the first thing that her fingers touched. She silently came down the stairs into the living room. Her heart seemed to freeze when she saw Spike, sitting on the floor, his head resting on the couch facing Sam’s as his hands traced idle patterns on her back. She could hear him whispering something soft to her.

~+~

“Can I get up now?" Spike whispered, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“Shhh… she’s watching." Sam shushed him.

“How do you know?" he asked, as a spark flashed in his eyes.

Sam felt a gut-wrenching pain in her stomach as the images in Buffy’s mind filtered into her own and brought with them all the pain the Slayer was feeling.

“Maybe this isn’t such a good idea…" she whispered.

~+~

Buffy swallowed hard at the seemingly intimate moment she was witnessing, forcing the pain down. She concentrated all of her strength into controlling her emotions as she spoke, but even so her voice came out weak and hoarse:

“I-I’ve got the towel."

At her words Spike turned around, pretending he hadn’t noticed her presence in the room. He stood up and walked towards her.

“Thanks."

He took the towel from her hands and brushed it over his hair. On the couch, Sam turned; a sleepy look on her face.

“Are we going home?" She asked with a husky slumber voice as she spread her arms out.

The word ‘home’ seemed to be dipped in poison as it stung in Buffy’s chest.

Before Spike could answer a loud thunder roared into the room.

“I don’t think you guys should go out in the storm. Maybe you should stay here." Buffy swallowed hard as she forced the offer out of her mouth.

Spike and Sam exchanged a look.

“Sam, Dawn is waiting for you up in her room." Buffy said as the redhead stood up and walked over to the stairs. “You know the way, right?"

“Yeah, Dawn showed me earlier." Sam gave her a weak smile as she shuffled her feet up the stairs.

An uncomfortable silence settled between the two blonds as they remained unmoving in the hall. Spike was the one to break it:

“Well, I’ll be off then. I’ll pick her up tonight." The vampire said as he handed her the wet towel and headed towards the door. He stopped when he heard her weakly voice out:

“Dawn’s almost here…" her fingers fidgeted nervously with the towel.

He turned around to face her; a frown over his eyebrows.

“The sun… it’ll be up soon. You don’t have time to reach the crypt." She noted.

“Right… I’ll take the sewers then." He was on the move again and she spoke:

“They’re probably flooded." It was almost a whisper.

“Probably." He agreed, staring at her with a piercing look.

“You could stay…" as she saw his eyes widening she quickly added nervously: “On the couch!" Taking a second she repeated with a calmer tone: “On the couch… you can sleep on the couch." She awkwardly pointed towards the living room.

A smirk fell over his lips as he detected her racing heartbeat.

“If you think its ok." He said nonchalantly as he shrugged.

~+~

She patted the sheets spreading them over the couch, making an improvised bed.

“You didn’t have to go through all that trouble, Slayer. Normally, I sleep on a sarcophagus, the couch is actually an improvement." The vampire spoke with his usual witty tone.

“I thought you bought a bed." She uttered with a hint of venom in her voice.

“How’d you know?" Spike’s eyebrows came together to form a frown.

“Sam told me." Buffy lied, as she tried to seem unaltered by the topic of conversation.

“Yeah. The woman’s insane. It took us three hours to pick a bloody bed and she had to choose the biggest one in the whole place." The vampire commented as he remembered that afternoon.

“So it’s true. You bought her a bed." She almost spat accusingly.

“I guess you can say that." He answered, oblivious to the Slayer’s growing anger as he sat on the couch.

“Well, I’m sorry you can’t sleep with her tonight." Buffy lamented sarcastically. “But I’m sure you guys can find a comfortable wall to hump against tomorrow." She spat out as she prepared to walk out of the room triumphantly.

Spike frowned, confused.

“What are you talking about, Slayer?"

“Don’t play dumb with me. You know what I’m talking about."

“Actually… no, not really."

Buffy sighed loudly before speaking:

“I saw you two, ok?"

“Saw us?" Spike continued to draw a complete blank.

“Yes!" Buffy was growing exasperated.

Spike stared at her as he waited for her to elaborate and she did:

“I saw you at the DoubleMeat, going at it like dogs in heat!" she almost shouted.

The vampire’s eyes widened, his jaw fell to the floor as he was completely flabbergasted.

“Excuse me… going at it?" He swallowed dryly.

Buffy groaned as her face cringed up in disgust.

“You’re really something, you know?" she said before she stormed out of the living room.

He was standing in front of her, baring her way up the stairs before she could blink.

“What are you talking about?" He asked with all the calm he could muster.

“I saw you when you were out back… doing… *it* with... her." She pointed skywards toward Dawn’s room with a disgusted look on her face.

“I never-“

“You’re such a… You’re…" she struggled with the words as the anger short-circuited her trail of thought.

“I’m telling you, Buffy. I haven’t been near that place since we…" His index finger travelled the small space between them alternating between pointing at her and him.

She stared up at him. His words just sounded so… truthful.

“Right… I’m supposed to believe that?" She snapped.

“Buffy…" the sound of her name on his lips sent shivers down her spine.

“What?" She asked annoyed as she tried to walk past him but he successfully blocked her passage.

“I haven’t been with her…" His voice was a mere whisper.

A sense of relief washed over her, but she kept her cold mask on.

“Look, what you do or don’t do is your business, alright?" As she finished her sentence she managed to outsmart him and pass by him. She was halfway up the stairs when she heard his comeback:

“Right… Cause you’re not jealous or anything."

She stopped dead in her tracks, whirled around and was standing in front of him, her index finger pointing at him accusingly:

“I. Am. Not. Jealous! I don’t’ care what you do. I really don’t. You can do it in the middle of Town Square for all I care. You can buy her a boat, a house, whatever. I. Don’t. Care."

“Then why are you going all Radio Rental?" he asked; the smug grin that took over his lips serving to fuel her anger.

“I’m not going… Radio Rental!" she bellowed.

“You’re telling me that the thought of me touching her like I *used* to touch you doesn’t make your stomach twist and turn?"

 _Yes…_ her mind admitted but her mouth spat out: “No!"

“Right! So that means it wouldn’t bother you if I went up these stairs right now and f-“

He stopped in mid sentence as a very pissed Slayer stood blocking his passage.

“You touch her again and I’ll cut something off-“

It was Buffy's turn to be interrupted as all of a sudden everything around them literarily disappeared, being replaced by debris, rubble and burnt out wood. The two blonds looked around flabbergasted.

“What the bloody fuck?"

Part IX  - David and Goliath

The two blondes stood next to each other gawking at the sight before them. All around them a crumbled sketch of what Revello Drive used to be. The smell of burnt wood reached their noses as a harsh breeze brought the scattered ashes closer to them. Rusted bars of metal stuck out from various cement girders left standing in the cluttered chaos. A few fires still burned, hungrily consuming the debris; above them - clouded black sky.

“What the hell happened?" Spike finally managed to speak, his eyes drifting over the nuclear holocaust like scenario.

“Where are we?" Was Buffy’s question.

“Looks like…" The vampire began when realisation finally came to Buffy. Her pupils dilating to ridiculous proportions and she suddenly began to wander around.

“This…? Is this…?" She stammered as she slowly recognized the outline of her house.

To her right was what seemed like the lingering form of a door; the door that led to… the kitchen? Further ahead a huge hole in the ground made way to her basement and right behind her were the remains of the stairs that used to head up to the top floor of the house.

“Dawn!" Buffy called out, as she looked at the crumbled steps that now led her nowhere. She turned to face Spike, a deep confused frown over his eyebrows mirrored her own. “What happened?"

“I don’t-“

Suddenly, the fragile floor beneath them started to cave in under their burden. Cat-like, Buffy jumped, pushing Spike with her as she lunged for solid ground. They rolled over each other on the dried up dirt with the force of impact as the sound of wood cracking and concrete crumbling echoed in their ears.

Breathless, Buffy nestled her face in the crook of the vampire’s neck as the thick cloud of dust and ash came upon them and engulfed their entangled bodies. Instinct took over as he brought his arms around the tiny form laying on top of him and with a swift move of his hips rolled them over once more so his broader body was covering hers, protecting her from all and any debris.

They remained intertwined long after the wave of wreckage had fluttered over them. Slowly, he pulled away from her, his hands framing her head as he stared down at her flushed face. Fear swam in his widened eyes, making his blue iris dark and murky.

“Are you ok?" He immediately asked.

She tried to say something, but only gasped sharply as the frightening heart rate caused her lungs to demand a larger supply of oxygen. Unable to speak, she nodded and swallowed hard, while she waited for the frantic pounding in her chest to slowdown.

Their gazes remained locked, the fear slowly dissipated as their minds became aware of their closeness. Lying on top of her, his fingers lingered in her hair, tangled in the now dust-covered threads as he pulled sharp unneeded breaths that matched her panting. Her hands were crushed between their torsos, her fingers clinging to the red fabric of his shirt, as if trying to pull him closer.

“Are you sure you’re ok, luv?" He rasped as his thumb unconsciously rubbed her forehead.

All her nerve endings seemed to be connected to the small patch of her skin that was in contact with the rough tip of his finger. She closed her eyes for a split second, savouring the soft touch as his scent surrounded her; the smell of leather, cigarettes and alcohol almost intoxicatingly familiar.

A sharp scream snapped them out of their daze, their heads immediately whirling in the direction of the sound. Spike clumsily stumbled to his feet, his hands running frantically over the still partially wet blond curls of his hair as he tried to ignore the tight knot in his throat.

Without exchanging a word the two quickly crossed the street and entered another crumbling house. This one was in better shape than Buffy’s as most of its walls were still up and so was the ceiling, even though the creaking sound coming from it testified to its fragility.

They moved through the wreckage; a myriad of burnt furniture in their way as they moved around looking for any clue. Suddenly, Spike straightened up, his eyes widening as he tried to listen.

“What?" Buffy whispered.

He held out a hand, signalling her to silence as he slowly made his way to a large cabinet at the far end of the room. When he reached for it, the carbonised door fell open revealing a young boy curled up in the corner. The vampire silently squatted in front of him while Buffy stood behind.

“Hey!" he breathed, but as he tried to reach for the boy, the small creature curled up even further, small sobs became bigger and his breathing became ragged as the adrenaline surged through his veins. “It’s ok…" Spike tried to reassure him as his hand came to rest on the small child’s hair.

After a few second, the boy’s head moved and he looked up, over his forearm that rested on his bony knees and covered the lower part of his face. Buffy repressed a gasp when she saw the fear swimming in the child’s eyes. He couldn’t be more than 9 years old; his clothes torn, his pale complexion marred with coal black dust.

“Are ok? Are you hurt?" The vampire asked as he continued to caress the boy’s light brown curls.

He nodded, signalling that he was ok, he wasn’t injured.

“Why are you in there?" Spike asked. “Don’t you want to come out?"

The boy’s eyes immediately widened, his black pupils dilating and spreading over the light blue of his iris as he once again shook his head.

“Why not?" Buffy finally spoke kneeling next to the vampire who gave her a disapproving look before he spoke:

“My name’s Spike." Spike outstretched his hand.

The child looked at the large fingers in front of him and after some pondering he took them in his small hand and shook them.

“M-Michael…"

“Nice to meet you, Michael." Spike gave him a smile and the fear in the boy’s eyes lessened. “This here’s Buffy." He introduced pointing to the blonde next to him.

“Hey there!" The Slayer smiled, taking his small hand into hers and shaking it.

“Hi." Michael greeted shyly.

“So… What are you doing? Playing hide and seek?" The vampire offered.

Michael shook his head as he finally relaxed his arm muscles and released his knees from his death grip.

“Then why are you in there?"

“So the-they won’t get me." He stammered.

“Who are they?" Buffy asked.

“Th-the ones tha-that came from the hole in the sky."

“The hole in the sky?" Buffy repeated frowning as she looked at Spike, his eyes, however, remained on the child.

“Can you show it to me? The hole?" The vampire asked.

Michael paused for a second. Pondering his answer and then he nodded.

They walked for a while and soon they realised the destruction hadn’t just struck Revello Drive but the rest of Sunnydale as well. Michael’s small hand held Spike’s pinkie as they made their way towards the outskirts of town. Slowly, on the horizon a sharp blue light pulsated, threatening to take over the ebony clouded sky. As they came closer, a chill ran down Buffy’s spine as she recognized the place – it was the tower, the place where she had fought Glory, almost a year before, the place where she had… died. Eventually, they saw it, from faraway; a large gash marred the skies, a tear in the fabric that separated dimensions. All sorts of creatures crawled their way out of there just like they had when… A gut-wrenching pain took over her abdomen as the memories flooded back to her.

“Spike…" she whispered when they all came to a stop.

The vampire’s eyes remained glued on the sky, occasionally drifting toward one or other creature that lurked out.

“It’s open…" He spoke softly as his mind tried to make any sense of what was happening.

“But it can’t be… I closed it. I-I… died to close it." Buffy’s glassy eyes stared blindly at the ripped piece of sky. “How?"

Her question remained unanswered as a thundering roar scrapped the skies and a large, black, scaly creature came tumbling out of the blue gap falling about 50 feet away from where the trio stood. Lightning-quick it straightened up, revealing its astonishing height, its nostrils flaring as the scent of fresh meat filtered in. With one swift movement, it whipped its slimy head around to face them exposing too large, elliptic white orbs, deprived of iris or pupils. They bore into Michael’s small form as it remained perfectly still, simply staring at the small brown haired boy.

A small squeak escaped Michael’s parted lips when the creature suddenly started running, its large reptilian legs making their way towards them with ground-eating steps.

Instinctively, the child’s grip on Spike’s finger grew stronger; the fear paralysing every muscle in his body.

The vampire’s eyes widened as the demon came closer and closer to them. He turned to look at Buffy who was still at his side and they exchanged a silent glance. Soon they too were running, away from the slimy ebony creature that followed them close behind.

Michael pressed his lips together as Spike picked him up and held him against his chest and the three raced through the deserted, wrecked streets.

“Spike, we…" gasp “have to…" gasp “hide." She managed to say between large gulps of air.

The vampire and the Slayer’s eyes scanned their surroundings as the threatening chase continued – the creature was gaining on them, coming closer and closer with each step. There was nowhere to go. All houses, buildings had been torn down or were about to crumble.

Buffy gasped as she slowly became aware of the demon’s proximity, its breath almost on them as her legs buckled from under her.

“There!" Spike shouted as his vampiric sight detected a small hole in the ground no bigger than one or two feet in diameter.

As they reached it, Spike gave out a loud sigh as he realised that it apparently led into a small pit.

“Buffy… Hurry!" The vampire ordered and begged while he looked over his shoulder to check on her. “Buffy!" he cried out when he saw her trip on some debris and stagger to the floor – the creature hovering over her tiny form.

Its large white orbs stared blankly at the prize at its feet while Buffy lay on her back staring up at him, her chest rapidly moving up and down as she drew deep, urgent breaths. For the first time in her life she was paralysed.

“Buffy move!" Spike ordered, screaming at the top of his lungs, but it was no use, she remained motionless as the demon lowered its head to her, sniffing her before opening its mandibles to let out a dinosaur-like roar.

The inhuman sound seemed to snap something inside the vampire as he turned toward Michael:

“Michael, you have to do something for me, ok?"

The child nodded.

“Go in there and don’t come out till I tell you to." The vampire looked straight into the boy’s eyes and he nodded once more.

He watched as Michael crawled into the small pit and fell out of sight. Glancing towards Buffy he saw that the creature now seemed to be playing with her, bringing its paws around her to imprison her. Pushing back the fear of seeing her so helpless, Spike picked up a small stone, aiming for the creature’s eyes and threw it with all his strength.

“Jackpot!" The vampire celebrated as the black demon let out a loud howl and stumbled back. Seeing his chance, Spike ran towards Buffy, picking her up in his arms and making his way back to the pit while the creature continued to wail.

“Buffy, snap out of it." Spike ordered as he ran.

Slowly, she seemed to be coming to as she began moving in his arms. When they reached the pit, Spike put her down falling to his knees as he quickly looked around, trying to find the entrance, but it was gone – vanished.

“Where the bloody hell is that thing? Michael!" The vampire called out as he tapped the ground looking for the gap.

“Spike…" Buffy’s weak voice reached his ears.

“Not now Slayer, help me find that…" He trailed off as, suddenly, wet grass spurted out from under his hands and he felt raindrops violently hitting his back.

“Spike…" she called out again as her eyes drifted over the changing scenery.

The vampire looked up and gasped as buildings started growing around them, trees appeared out of thin air and the creature, that had been howling, disappeared, its ungodly scream being the last evidence to dissipate as, suddenly, they seemed to be back in good old, non-cataclysmic Sunnydale.

They stare blankly, letting their clothes soak through as they tried to make some sense out of every thing their eyes had just witnessed. A loud roaring thunder made them aware of the storm around them as they looked at each other.

“Michael…" Spike breathed looking at the stomped grass at his feet.

~+~

With tired arms she pushed the kitchen door open. Thankfully she hadn’t locked it when the… thing happened.

The two blondes hurried inside as the rain continued to pour outside. They made it just in the nick of time as the sun’s first rays cut through the thick grey clouds.

They stood gasping, taking in sharp breaths when their eyes met, the doubt and questions reflecting off one another for a moment.

“What just happened?" Spike managed to ask as he set his hand over the counter for support.

Buffy shook her head pressing her lips together. She was soaked through; her blond hair, that she had pinned up, was now plastered against her skull and hung down the sides of her face as thick drops of water dripped from the tips of her tangled threads.

Spike swallowed hard when he noticed the way her clothes clung even more to her body, the white tank top was now slightly see-through, the outline of her nipples revealed by two dark circles sticking out against the thin fabric. Shaking his head out of his daze he quickly moved towards her.

“You better get out of those wet clothes. Don’t want you catching a cold." He said as he tried to ignore the growing pain in his groin.

“Oh… right!" Self-consciously she brought her arms across her chest to cover herself as they went towards the hall.

He bent down to pick up the towel she had discarded earlier, before… He draped it around her small form, softly rubbing her naked arms as he tried to dry her. Taking the edge of the white fabric and pulling at it, he worked on her tangled hair. She remained still, looking up at him while her mind raced. The questions blurred as their proximity dawned on her, as her arms pressed against his soaked shirt, as his scent reached and engulfed her, as she felt him softly caress her hair. She tried to lock his gaze, but his eyes remained focussed on her rebellious blonde threads while he now slowly tried disentangling them - the towel forgotten over her shoulders.

A familiar chill coursed through him as he felt her heart violently pounding in her chest, her breathing now coming in deep, needed pants. He pushed back the urge to crush her against him and claim her trembling lips by swallowing hard and keeping his eyes on her dishevelled hair.

Realising he wasn’t going to make a move, her fingers found their way to the small space between two buttons of his shirt, sneaking in to touch the soft alabaster skin beneath. At the contact his mind swirled, the sensations creeping up on him and he wasn’t able to repress a gasp from escaping.

“What…" He swallowed hard as another finger found its way to gently caress his chest. “…are you doing…?" His voice was hoarse and weak from the effort he was making to ignore the effect she had on him.

She remained silent, with ragged breaths; looking up, desire swam in her hazel eyes as she edged closer to him and pressed her entire body against him. Cat-like she leaning her head into his hand and instinctively he rubbed his thumb against her flushed cheek as she slowly lifted herself on the tip of her toes to close the distance between their mouths.

“Buffy!" The young voice hovered from the top floor as steps were heard.

The Slayer’s eyes shot open as the vampire’s body seemed to have magically disappeared. Slowly, her eyes focused in the dim light and she saw him standing two feet from her. She stared at him perplexed when she finally heard her name being called again. She looked up the stairs to see a scared Dawn coming down. As she came closer, she noticed a mixture of pain and fear reflected in her glassy eyes. Behind her came Willow, Sam, Tara and Anya. The ex-demon limped down the stairs and the redhead witch had a deep gash on her forehead.

“Oh, my God, Willow! What happened?" Buffy swallowed hard and tried to get her breathing under control as she spoke.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a stake materialized in Dawn’s trembling hand; she aimed it straight at Buffy’s chest.

“I’m sorry, Buffy!" Dawn managed to say before lunging at her sister.

Even though the attack caught her by surprise, Buffy easily deflected the blow with a swift move of her arm and soon she had the stake in her hand as Dawn stagger to the floor.

“What are you doing!?" The slayer asked confused and as she turned to look at the four women on the stairs, three of them held up crosses, Sam was the only one left unarmed.

A frown settled on Willow’s eyebrows as she brought her cross closer to the blonde who seemed immune to its effect.

“Willow?" Buffy looked at her questioningly as the heavy metallic object was now pressed against her forehead.

The witch’s eyes widened and she quickly dropped the cross, flinging her arms around her best friend.

“Buffy! You’re not a vampire!!" The redhead cried out, her hug bordering on assault.

“What… are you talking about?" The blonde asked when she finally managed to disentangle herself from the redhead.

“How?" Anya asked dropping her own cross on the stairs.

“I’m the one who should be asking ques-“ Buffy wasn’t able to finish her sentence as now she found herself surrounded by her younger sister’s arms.

The Slayer frowned exchanging a look with the vampire who still stood in the corner of the hall.

“We need to talk, guys."

~+~

They all sat in the living room around the coffee table. The two witches and the ex-demon took the couch while Dawn sat in one of the armchairs and Spike on the other. A very sleepy Xander sat at Anya’s feet and Sam stood a bit farther away while Buffy paced around.

“The portal was open?" Willow asked confused.

Buffy nodded as she stopped pacing and crossed her arms around her chest.

“An-and the whole town was destroyed?" Tara stuttered.

“Major destructorama."

There was silence in the room.

“And while you were… in this place… some vampy-Buffy was here?" Willow tried to sum it up.

“Plus, some really strange things have been happening to me." Buffy added. “Like, remember when you came into my room last Saturday? Asking if I was ok?"

Willow nodded.

“Did you come back again afterwards?"

“No."

“Well, not even two second after, you came in again and started acting exactly the same as you had the first time, like… I don’t know, someone had rewind the tape and played the scene again."

“Like in that movie with Bill Murray, where the same day happens over and over again." Xander offered as he yawned.

“Yeah, sort of."

“T-that happened t-to us too, honey!" Tara stammered and her stomach turned as all eyes were focused on her.

“It did?" Willow asked a bit confused.

“When we at the Espresso Pump and that old lady asked us where the bus stop was? Remember?"

 “Oh, yeah, and then she asked us again. We just thought she was kinda strange. Weird thing was that the first time she came to talk to us she was holding her glasses. She accidentally dropped them and broke them and the second time she came she had the glasses in her hands and they were in perfect condition." Willow finished.

A frown settled over Sam’s eyebrows as she got two conflicting images from Tara’s mind.

“Oh, or when we saw Spike had crashed…" Dawn stopped her reasoning and turned to ask the vampire: “Have you ever crashed into the Sunnydale welcoming sign?"

At the question a smug smile crossed Spike lips and he chuckled before he answered:

“Every time I come back. It’s sort of like… tradition." The room turned to look at the vampire sprawled on the armchair. “What?"

“See, it’s some time shifting thingy." Dawn concluded.

“Then what we saw…" Buffy pointed towards her and Spike and continued: “It’s the future?"

Silence filled the room once more as fear filtered into their minds. Willow was the one to break the stillness:

“But it doesn’t make sense. We already closed the gate and Dawn is no longer the Key. They can’t open it. Who would want to open it anyway?"

No one offered any theory or reasoning, they all stared blankly at each other. A loud sighed was heard from the corner of the room and they turned to see Sam leaning against the wall.

“ _Might as well give them a little shove in the right direction, it’s not like I’m interfering."_ The redhead thought to herself before she spoke:

“Tara?"

“Y-Yes?"

“Was there anything different between the first time the old lady came to speak to you and the second?"

Buffy’s eyebrows came together to form a frown. What was she getting at?

“Well…" Tara’s eyes rolled skywards as she tried to replay the events in her mind. “I-I don’t think… Wait! The glasses!"

“What about the glasses, honey?" Willow asked.

“She dropped them the first time and broke them, right?"

“Yeah."

“What about the second time?" Tara tried to make the redhead see.

“She dropped them again." Willow answered matter-of-factly, still confused. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she cried out: “She didn’t break them!"

“Exactly!" Tara smiled.

“What do you mean?" It was Xander’s turn to question.

“The first time she dropped the glasses and when she picked them up they were broken, the second time around she dropped them, but when she picked them up they were slightly bent, but not broken."

The look on the young man’s face told her that he didn’t understand the relevance of that detail.

“So she was lucky the second time, so what?"

“Can’t you see? It didn’t happen the way it was supposed to happen. It was different, so it couldn’t have been a repetition or a time shifting thing." Willow concluded triumphantly.

Part X  - Untwining the Vines

They sat around the coffee table debating as the thick raindrops continued to slam against the windows.

“Well, if it’s not time shifting, what is it?" Buffy asked confused.

The smile that Willow displayed on her lips crumbled when she realised she had no answer to the question. Everyone looked at each other, a worried expression on their faces as their minds came out blank.

“Let’s see what we have." Buffy started to sum it up. “Something is making the past repeat itself, but it’s not actually a repetition of the past because… the glasses didn’t break. God… this is just absurd!" she sighed loudly letting her arms fall limply at her sides.

As the argument developed, Spike’s gaze fell over the redhead standing furthest from them, leaning on the wall; her arms crossed over her chest. She remained expressionless, watching them debate the issue without interfering, as if she had no opinion. There was something wrong. She always had an opinion! On everything! And she always made sure everyone knew about it. He continued to stare at her, when, eventually, their eyes met. She immediately looked away, pretending not to have seen him tilt his head towards the hall.

She continued to observe the group while, out of the corner of her eyes, she tried to disregard the vampire that was now staring intensely at her. Suddenly, she got a flash of him and her talking in the kitchen. It was a clear message from Spike’s mind. She ignored the signal and soon another image reached her, this one of him dragging her out of the living room by her hair. She winced and immediately darted an ugly look at him. The vampire, however, remained unaltered as he mouthed the words: “Kitchen, now!" before standing up and walking out.

Everyone was so wrapped up in their discussion they didn’t notice Spike, or even Sam as she left the room a minute after him.

The redhead tiptoed her way across the hall and into the kitchen. A frown settled over her eyebrows when reached the doorframe of the room and failed to find him. She walked in and, suddenly, he stepped in her way, blocking her passage.

“Jesus Christ!" She gasped; her trembling hand slammed against her chest. “What the hell are you doing?" She whispered as she remembered the others weren’t supposed to know they were there. “You do know I’m human right now, don’t you? I *can* die of a heart attack!" she grumbled stumbling her way towards the nearest chair around the counter, her hand still clinging to the red fabric over her chest as her heart pounded furiously underneath. “Jesus…"

“What’s going on, freckles?" Spike asked ignoring her protests.

“Don’t call me that." She pouted bringing her hand to cover her nose and frowning. She looked like a five year-old child.

“What do you know?" The vampire remained unaltered as he hovered over her sitting form.

“What do you mean?" She pretended not to know what he was talking about.

“Stop poncing around and just tell me." He grumbled.

She looked up at him, her fingers still over her nose as she contemplated him with a pondering look. After a few moments of silence she brought her hand down to rest on the counter and sighed:

“I can’t tell you. I wish I could, but I can’t. I *really* can’t." Her eyes pleaded him to let the subject go, but he would have none of that as he shook his head and gave her a cold look. “You have to figure it out for yourselves. I can’t get involved. I’m already involve up to my neck in this thing and if I cross that line…" She trailed off and for the first time since he’d met her he saw a flash of fear in her eyes.

He swallowed hard before speaking:

“The Slayer almost got eaten by some giant black, scaly thing right out of Jurassic Park. Dawn and Willow almost got killed by a vampire version of Buffy. I need to know what’s going on. You have to tell me." His tone was calm and soft as his hand came to rest on her forearm.

Silence filtered between the two of them once more. It wasn’t an uncomfortable one; it was just there as he waited for her to make her decision. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she got a crunching pain in her stomach and the image of herself and Spike holding hands flashed before her. She looked up towards the door to find a frozen Buffy standing there staring back at her.

The vampire turned around to see the object of Sam’s attention and the blonde girl’s gaze dropped to the floor.

“Sorry, I-I didn’t mean to interrupt. I-I was just…" she stammered incoherently as she tried to explain her presence in her own kitchen.

“You’re not interrupting anything. Actually, we were just heading back into the living room." Sam said quickly as she stood up and started to leave.

A strong cold grip on her arm stopped her, forcing her to turn around and find Spike’s eyes bearing into hers. For a second, his blue eyes looked away from her as he spoke:

“We’ll be there in a second." He replied as he waited for the Slayer to leave the room.

Awkwardly, and feeling a heart-wrenching pain in her chest, the blonde turned on her heels and disappeared from the tiled room. Turning his attention back to the redhead he still held by the arm he asked:

“Are you gonna tell me?"

“I’ll tell you what I can." She nodded and he loosened his grip on her, letting her walk out of the kitchen as he followed her close behind.

When they reached the living room, everyone was speaking in a loud, fired-up discussion, oblivious to the two, except for Buffy, who was leaning on the armchair Dawn was sitting on.

“Guys…" Sam tried to call out, but her suddenly weak voice didn’t have much effect on the small crowd. She whirled around with hopeful eyes and quipped: “They’re too busy. I’ll tell them later." And with a plastic smile she tried to walk away, but the vampire stood his ground and towered over her.

“Hey!" Spike bellowed to the gossiping crowd.

Everyone froze and turned to look at the vampire.

“Sam wants to say something." He announced.

They all sat and waited in silence as the redhead sighed loudly before turning around to face them.

“I have a… theory." She started. “About what’s happening… I mean."

Silence. She looked up at the vampire who stood next to her and seeing the resolve in his eyes she made a painful face before continuing:

“Has anyone here ever heard of parallel universes?" She asked.

“Sure. It’s this theory that says there are various other universes where we make other choices and consequentially we lead completely different lives." Willow explained.

“Exactly. For every choice you make in your life, another universe is created, a parallel universe, where you chose one of the other options you had." Seeing the frown on Xander’s face she exemplified: “Say you woke up today and had to choose between a sandwich and a cookie, and you chose the sandwich, in another universe you chose a cookie, and in another you chose not to eat at all. Basically, if you consider how many people there are in the world and how many there were, you’ll figure out there is a myriad, an infinite number of parallel universes." Sam clarified.

“Like the time Cordy wished Buffy had never come to Sunnydale." Willow noted.

Everyone in the room eyed Anya.

“What?! It was my job!" The ex-demon defended herself.

Realizing his fiancée was the focus of negative attention, Xander tried to change the topic of conversation.

“So what does that have to do with what’s happening?"

“Well, what if instead of time shifting, what was happening were junctions of different universes."

The confused look on everyone’s face told her she had to elaborate on the subject.

“Like different dimensions coming together, except it’s not dimensions but different universes. Something might be causing the various universes to get mixed up, entangling them like twining vines until you can’t tell which is your universe." The redhead explained.

“Is that even possible?" Dawn asked.

“So what I saw in my room was a Willow from a parallel universe? But, she looked exactly like our Willow. She had on exactly the same clothes and all." Buffy spoke as she tried to ignore the knot that formed in her stomach from seeing Spike and the redhead standing together.

“Probably the choice that Willow made was a very small one. Maybe it was coming to see you a few minutes after our Willow came into your room." Sam shrugged.

“A-and the woman we saw, the difference was that she didn’t break her glasses." Tara exclaimed.

“Probably." Sam brought her lips together.

“So the place where we were was a parallel universe? A place where I didn’t stop Glory from opening the portal? Where Dawn…" Buffy swallowed hard as she looked at her younger sister.

“Who knows? Maybe you weren’t even there. Maybe in that place you never really existed and Dawn was never even created. The Key was something else and Glory managed to find it and open the gate." Sam offered.

“Man, that’s just creepy." Xander spoke.

Anya lifted her hand shyly and the redhead nodded giving her permission to speak.

“So… let’s suppose this universe momentarily merges with another… If I eat a sandwich that is from the other universe… do I gain weight?"

Everyone frowned and looked questioningly at the ex-demon.

“What? It’s a perfectly legitimate question!" Anya defended herself as she looked at Sam for the answer.

Bringing her eyebrows high on her forehead and setting her lips in a straight line she answered as she shook her head slightly:

“I have absolutely no idea."

“See, if I eat while the universes are entangled the sandwich will pass through me, but…" The ex-demon raised her index finger as she triumphantly made her point “the moment the universes disentangle… the sandwich should just disappear from within me and appear in the other universe out of nowhere. Just plop on the floor in the middle of whatever street I am. Just a green, slobbery, munched up sandwich dropping out of nothing."

As she listened to the twisted theory, Sam’s face slowly started to curl into a painful expression of disgust as the images coming from the ex-demon flashed before her eyes.

“Can we please change the subject?" Willow intervened pleadingly.

“My vote on that one would be a loud and resounding yay!" Dawn agreed.

“S-so… What do we do now?" Tara asked.

Buffy uncrossed her arms and stood up straight.

“I guess we research for anything that can cause the universes to get all mix-y."

~+~

Dawn dropped her dead weight on the couch and it screeched under the sudden burden.

“God, I’m tired!" She breathed as she stared up at the ceiling.

“Don’t get comfy, we’ve got to get things cleaned up." Buffy warned as she began to pick up one of the many cups of coffee left on the table.

“Can’t. Sleeping now." Dawn muttered, quickly closing her eyes.

“Dawn…"

“I’m not the Dawn of this universe. I come from a parallel universe where I never went to a bachelor party, hence I don’t have to clean up." The young girl explained.

“Dawn!" Buffy warned her.

Sighing, the brunette stood up and dragged her feet into the kitchen; her hands filled with mugs.

“It’s not fair." She grumbled.

“Nothing is." Buffy replied turning on the water and began to wash the cups.

“Wasn’t Sam just amazing today?" Dawn spoke enthusiastically as she took the towel in her hand and began to dry the mugs that were handed to her by her sister. “I mean, coming up with that whole… Universe thing was just…" The brunette widened her eyes to emphasize her words.

“I guess." The Slayer reluctantly admitted.

“She’s just so cool. I’m glad Spike’s got such a cool girlfriend, he-“ she stopped in mid sentence as the cup that Buffy was handing her slipped from her big sister’s hands and fell to the floor, shattering to pieces.

“Damn it!" Buffy cursed, picking up the broken item.

“Are you ok?" Dawn asked concerned, crouching next to her.

“I’m fine." The Slayer snapped.

“Oh, right, you’re just a world of fine today." The brunette mocked sarcastically. “What is it? You don’t like Sam?"

“Like Sam just fine!" The slayer spoke with restrained anger in her voice as she threw the broken pieces into a garbage bag. She stopped for a second, standing up and looking at her sister. “You know what? I hope Spike and her are really happy together. Get married, move to the suburbs, build a house with a stupid picket fence and have lots of horrible little brats, ok?!"

“Gee… Buffy, jealous much?" Dawn asked as her sister walked outside and dropped the bag on the porch.

At her sister’s words she froze and turned around.

“I. Am. Not. Jealous!" She grinded her teeth together and the words barely left her mouth. “What is it with everyone?"

“Whatever…" The teenager sighed, crossing her arms and walking out of the room, leaving her sister planted there, with an angry look on her face.

~+~

A loud thud was heard and everyone turned to see Xander’s face pressed between two yellow pages of a book.

“Xander… Wake up." Anya encouraged him patting his back.

He mumbled something incoherent from between the pages shaking his head.

“Honey…" The ex-demon continued to massage his back as she leaned in and whispered something in his ear.

Immediately, he whipped his head up and looked wide-eyed at everyone.

“I’m up!"

His gaze then fell over his fiancée giving her a wicked smile.

“Erg… I don’t even think it’s legal for me to know what you just told him." Dawn said as she made an ‘ _I’m about to puke_ ’ face.

~+~

Sam stumbled in her path and made a disgusted face as Spike prepared to open the door to the Magic Box.

“Wha’?" The vampire asked, frowning.

“Just got a flash from Xander." She muttered in repugnance.

He grinned pushing the door open and letting Sam walk into the shop.

“It’s not funny." She sulked. “It’s a curse."

~+~

A rebellion started in Buffy’s stomach as her breakfast decided to make a run for it and crawl up her oesophagus at the sight of the bleached vampire holding the door open for the redhead. She wore a cute pout on her face while he displayed his usual cocky grin. He was probably teasing her. The Slayer swallowed hard before asking:

“What’s a curse?"

The couple walking into the room exchanged a guilty look and then answered in unison.

“Nothing!"

The perfectly timed reply doubled the pain in her gut and she dropped her gaze to the book in front of her.

“Anything?" Spike asked as he pulled out a chair for Sam to sit on before he took one for himself.

The Slayer’s eyes widened at the sight and Sam got a flash of herself laying face down in a puddle of mud.

 _“Here we go again…"_ The redhead thought as the painful images started to assault her mind.

“Nothing." Willow answered the vampire’s question. “But then again we have just started, so…"

They sat around for hours, going through a mountain of books piled up on top of the wooden table.

“I give up! There is nothing here." Xander stated between loud sighs.

“You give up? You haven’t even started. You’ve been skimming through the books just looking at the pretty pictures the whole time." Spike grumbled, his eyes never leaving the leather covered volume he held in his hands.

“Hey!" The young man started to protest when he felt someone kick him in the shin under the table. “Double hey!" he added looking at Anya.

“What?" The ex-demon asked innocently.

Xander leaned in to whisper in her ear:

“Why are you taking his side?"

“Because we like him." She answered as her index moved between the two of them alternating between pointing at herself and at her fiancée.

“Since when do *we*" Xander imitated her motion. “Like him?"

“Since he’s started dating Sam." Anya replied matter-of-factly.

“What does that have to do with anything?"

“Well, they are the only couple we know, besides Willow and Tara, and they don’t count because they are gay. We need to hang out with couples. It’s important for the stability of our relationship, it helps to solidify emotional bonding if we interact with other couples and find common interests with them."

“Says who?" The young man asked in disbelief.

“Cosmopolitan." Anya answered matter-of-factly, her eyes never leaving the book she held.

“We have to be nice to Spike because some magazine says so?" Xander asked in disbelief.

“Yes and... Well, I like Sam. She understands me. We have girl-talks." The ex-demon pouted. “So if she likes Spike, then we like Spike. We can even go on a double date."

“What?!" Xander bawled a bit louder.

Everyone around the table looked at him and the young man gave them his best ‘ _I’m sorry look_ ’. Their gazes dropped back to the books they all held and Xander whispered once again:

“We are not going on a double date! I am *not* going on a double date with Spike." He grumbled.

Anya however, ignored him and continued to flip through the eggshell coloured pages.

“I’m done with this one." Spike said as he threw the book onto the table and leaned back in the chair.

“Well, there are a few other volumes of that collection in the back row, top self." Anya informed and the vampire gave her a look, but didn’t say anything as he stood up and disappeared behind a wall of books.

After a few seconds a noisy thud was heard followed by an equally loud string of British curses.

“Will someone give me a hand back here? Bloody hell."

Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy noticed Sam shuffle in her seat, preparing to stand. As if she had been burnt, the Slayer immediately rose from her chair; all eyes were on her. Awkwardly, and stumbling on her own feet, the blonde stuttered as she pointed with her thumb over her shoulder:

“I-I’ll go and… help."

With that she whirled around to disappear behind the bookshelves. She took a deep breath once she was out of sight, trying hard to relax. But her heart leaped to her throat when she saw the familiar vampire crouching, with his back turned to her as he clumsily tried to pick up the books, which were splayed on the wooden floor. She chocked back a nervous laugh and mentally kicked herself for feeling so helpless around him. ‘ _This is Spike, there is no reason for you to get all nervous and sweaty._ ’

“It’s not funny, freckles." Spike protested as he finally managed to stand up, holding all the books against his chest. “It’s not funny at…" he stopped briefly when he saw Buffy standing in front of him. “Oh, it’s you."

She cringed a bit as she misinterpreted his surprise for disappointment.

“I thought you were…"

“Sam." She completed his sentence.

“Yeah." He answered, trying hard to keep his nervousness from his voice. It happened every single time he saw her, even more so when he saw her in unexpected situations. This strange knot in his stomach would start taunting him, crawling up to his throat and making it almost impossible to speak. He swallowed hard, causing his Adam’s apple to bob up and down and revealing his unease.

“So… Freckles… it’s her… pet name?" The words seemed to cut their way up to her mouth as she said them.

“Yeah. She has these cute little spots on her nose…" He explained trying to point at his own nose but failing as he tried to hold onto the books. “She hates them, so I tease her about it."

Silence settled between them, making them extremely uncomfortable. Suddenly, something snapped inside of the Slayer, she couldn’t really tell what had caused it, maybe it was the way he had said that word… _cute_ , or maybe it was just all the pent up emotions she had been feeling lately but she blurted out:

“Are you two dating?" The moment she spoke the words, she regretted them, wishing she could take them back as she felt the blood rush to her face.

He opened his mouth in what looked more like a natural surprise-driven action than actually an attempt to answer her, but before he could say or do anything she was already vehemently shaking her hand and her head excusing herself: “Sorry, I-I shouldn’t have…I have nothing to do… I’m sorry!" the added nervousness didn’t help, causing her to stumble over all the words that flooded her mind.

Instead of saying anything else that would probably worsen the situation, she opted for making herself useful by reaching for the books he was holding. However, her racing heart and adrenaline packed limbs easily led to a miscalculation of her movements and as a result the heavy volumes were now once again covering the floor.

“I-I’m sorry." She stammered once more as she kneeled down at the same time as the vampire did and began to pick up the books.

Suddenly, in another abrupt mood swing, she dropped the leather-covered volumes and looked up at the crouching blond in front of her.

“You know what? I’m not sorry." She said with resolve in her voice.

“You’re not?" He questioned as an eyebrow instinctively shot up his forehead.

“No."

“For dropping the books or for asking if I was…" He suggestively tilted his head toward the table behind the bookshelves.

“For… Why are you with her?" She asked with conviction.

He could see the mixture of fear and doubt in her eyes as she stared bravely at him.

“Well, because she’s… It’s…" The vampire struggled to find an explanation as to why he was with Sam. Truth was he didn’t really know. She had come to him one night and told him that she was… well, basically his guardian angel from Hell and that from that moment onward he would have to put up with her. But he couldn’t tell the Slayer that, he wasn’t allowed. “It’s… complicated."

“Complicated?" She repeated a bit sceptical.

He noticed her bringing her lips together and swallowing hard before she blurted out:

“Do you like her?"

“Well…" He stopped in mid sentence as they both heard a shuffling sound coming from behind Buffy.

In a blink of an eye, the two were standing, the books forgotten on the floor as they turned to find the oddest creature they had ever seen staring back at them.

About twenty inches tall, the short demon was very thin. Its legs were extremely short, while its scrawny arms were long and slender and as a result of the odd combination its three fingered hands hovered just over the floor. The slimy substance that covered its entire body gave his skin a shiny wet look. On his face two large eyes smiled at them when he suddenly raised his skinny hand and waved it at them.

“Hi!" It greeted them as his mouth widened in a grin that revealed his total lack of teeth.

Part XI  - Sugamoon

Spike and Buffy gawked at the creature standing before them, its toothless mouth gaping open in a strange form of a smile.

“Why you still here? Why you not in sugamoon?" it asked with a screeching voice.

 The two blondes eyed each other in confusion.

“Suga-?“ Buffy stopped in mid-sentence and rephrased as she shook her head: “What are you? What are you doing here?"

At the question the scrawny demon frowned.

“You hit head?"

“Huh?"

“Me It." It explained as another of its odd smiles spread over its lips.

“You it?" It was Spike’s turn to question.

In response, the creature emphatically nodded, goofy grin still plastered on.

Cautiously, Buffy took a step towards the funny demon and bent down to observe it closely. It didn’t look dangerous. No teeth, no claws, no horns. Nope, nothing dangerous about him, except for the strange smell it emanated. Standing up straight, the Slayer leaned back towards the vampire that stood behind her.

“What is it?" she asked.

“Do I look like a walking demonology book to you, Slayer?" Spike quipped, raising his scarred eyebrow when he noticed the small demon eyeing him with its large eyes.

Buffy sighed at his reply but tried to ignore it as she continued to speak.

“What is it doing here?"

“And once again - not a walking demon-“

“Ok, ok, I get it." The Slayer exhaled again turning her attention to the demon. “Hum… It?"

The creature grinned wildly.

“Can you come here for a second?" She asked as she moved between the shelves packed with books.

The demon gingerly followed, its small feet dragging on the floor making a shuffling sound as it moved. Spike couldn’t help smiling as he noticed its odd way of walking, it seemed strangely familiar.

“Hey, did you get the b-“ Willow’s voice trailed off when she saw the small creature standing next to the Slayer.

Everyone around the table turned to look at the demon.

“Yacks! What is it?" Xander immediately jumped up.

“Xander!" It squeaked in its high-pitched voice, shuffling its feet across the room, its arms wide open as he closed the distance between the two.

The young man was up and cowering behind his fiancée before the demon could reach him.

“Ah! Get it away from me!"

The demon’s expression changed at Xander’s reaction, its lower lips jutting out for a painful pout.

“It knows you!" Anya noted. Slowly, as realisation came so did a frown over her forehead. “Why does it know you? Xander! Where do you know this demon from?" she asked with an accusing tone.

“I-I don’t know. I have no idea." The young man tried to defend himself.

“You no like me no more?" The creature squeaked sadly.

“Oh, it’s so cute!" Dawn and Willow said in unison.

Buffy frowned at her sister’s and best friend’s statement.

“You think it’s cute? We don’t know what it is, for all we know it could be a deadly demony… evil… thing that is planning to kill us all." The Slayer tried to reason.

“Right, you can just tell it’s planning to tear us to small unrecognisable pieces with its huge, non-existing teeth." Spike mocked from his spot leaning against a bookcase.

“Hey!" Buffy protested. Turning to the rest of the gang she continued: “We have to find out what it is. We have to research."

“Or we could just ask the little bugger, seeing as he speaks English." The vampire’s tone dripped with sarcasm.

The Slayer shot him a dirty look before turning to ask the demon:

“Where-are-you-from? Where-do-you-live?" Buffy said the two phrases carefully, articulating each word as if she was speaking to a foreigner who knew little or no English.

The creature tilted its head and frowned before asking: “You hit head?"

Buffy’s lips settled in a straight line as she heard the muffled laugh coming from the vampire behind her.

“You think you can do better?" she asked turning to face the Brit.

“Couldn’t be worse." The vampire pushed himself off the bookcase and uncrossed his arms. “Hey, there."

“Hi, Spike!" It greeted.

The blonde was a little disconcerted by the fact that the demon knew his name, but tried to ignore it.

“What are you doing here?"

“Help Anya." It gingerly answered as it smiled toward the young woman.

“You know Anya?" The vampire asked.

The creature nodded.

“Do you know all of us?" Spike circled his index finger in the air, gesturing toward everyone.

It turned to scan the room.

“Me not know her." And it pointed towards Sam who was still sitting around the table next to Dawn.

“Everyone else you know?"

Another nod.

“Where do you know us from?"

This time it froze. It didn’t seem to understand the question.

“Me know everyone." It simply answered.

“Yes, we’ve established that. Now, where do you know us from?" The vampire asked again.

“Me know from… Master?"

Everyone frowned.

“We fight Master." It elaborated.

“You fought the Master with us?" Buffy asked with a frown. “Why would we need a scrawny little demon to fight a vampire?"

“No vampire." It corrected.

“No vampire?" The Slayer repeated.

“Master, no vampire."

“I give up." Buffy sighed flopping onto a nearby chair.

“Look, it’s probably from a parallel universe, where it helped us fight some Big Bad who happened to be a Master." Willow offered.

At the Wicca’s explanation the short demon scratched its head.

“Parallel univ…?"

“What is it doing here now?" Dawn asked as she stared at the cute little thing.

“The two universes must be joined right now." Sam finally spoke. “He’ll probably disappear like all the other ones."

~+~

Three hours later, the demon sat on the floor squeaking “ _Wind Beneath My Wings_ " off the top of its lungs.

“Hey! Knock it off!" Spike growled for the third time.

“Sorry!" The demon shrilled bowing its head as it stood up and began walking around.

“Don’t shout at It!" Dawn, Willow and Sam protest in unison and the vampire sank into his chair.

Xander peeped over the edge of the large volume he was holding and smiled at the sight of the small demon shuffling its feet as it walked.

“It looks like a scrawny version of ET. It even walks like it." The young man remarked.

“Oh, yeah! That’s what it reminded me of." Spike spoke, glancing towards the slimy creature.

They all returned to their research when a strange humming sound started coming from It, gradually, words followed and once more It was pseudo-singing as loud as it could.

“Bloody hell!" The vampire bellowed and as a result he got staking looks from all the females present. “You said that it would disappear!" Spike groaned accusingly at Sam.

“It’s taking longer. Maybe its getting worse and now the mixing is taking longer to get… unmixed." The redhead offered defensively.

“It’s a Khind’Ara  demon." Anya explained as she read from a book she held in her hands. “Harmless, sort of dumb-“

“Hey!" the demon protested. “Me no dumb!" Crossing its scrawny arms over its chest in a sign of protest.

“Not much more. Except that it survives by serving other larger, stronger demons." Anya continued.

Everyone looked at the demon pouting in the corner and a general sigh was heard.

“He’s just so cute." Sam noted.

“He’s bloody annoying that’s what he is. If he sings that tune one more time I’m gonna…" The vampire trailed off as Dawn gave him a look of steel.

A few minutes later…

“ _You are the wind beneath my wings…"_ the demon screeched.

“Ok, that’s it!" Spike growled, standing up and walking towards the creature with ground eating steps.

Buffy was off her chair and between the two in a flash. It cowered behind the Slayer for protection as she looked up to meet the vampire’s angry gaze.

“You’re not touching him." She stated.

“Slayer, you might actually like that tune, you might even want it during your wed-“ He wasn’t able to finish as the Slayer’s hand now covered his mouth.

“No need to dig up nasty memories." She said.

Slowly, realisation that her fingers were touching his parted lips dawned on her and she froze as a rush of electricity coursed through her. She swallowed hard, trying to ignore it, fighting the urge to roll her eyes back in their sockets as she felt him close his mouth and accidentally kiss her skin.

Spike pulled a sharp, unnecessary breath at the feel of her fingers on his lips, her familiar scent flaring his nostrils, bringing with it the memory of her touch, her taste. He could swear he could sense the blood rushing in his body, but suddenly it was gone.

She dropped her hand quickly when she noticed the look on everyone’s faces.

“J-Just leave It alone." She stuttered as she felt the flush take over the pale complexion of her face.

“Then make it stop singing that bloody tune." He snarled.

Turning around and squatting down she spoke softly:

“It, stop singing that song, the bad vampire here doesn’t like it."

“But is song from wedding." The small demon squeaked.

“Wedding?" Anya frowned. “Someone played that God awful song at my wedding? No one’s playing that, not even in a parallel universe. Except if…" her expression changed from outrage to fear. “Oh my God Xander! I have bad taste in a parallel universe!" The ex-demon started to bawl.

“Oh… honey, no you don’t. I’m sure it wasn’t our wedding." Xander tried to reassure her.

“It no Anya and Xander wedding." It spoke

“See…" The young man said as he noticed his fiancée was starting to calm down.

“It Buffy and Spike wedding." It quipped with a huge grin.

“WHAT?!" everyone in the room said in unison, except for Sam who had already had a flash from the demon some time before.

“Wha-what do you mean, my wedding with Spike?" Buffy asked incredulous.

“You marry Spike." It announced.

“I’m gonna marry Spike?" A hint of despair floated in her voice as she stood up and turned to look at the vampire.

“No." The demon corrected.

“Thank God!" Xander breathed.

“You already marry Spike. You be in sugamoon now!"

“Suga-what?" Spike asked.

“I think he means honeymoon." Sam stepped in as she tried to bite back the laughter.

“We got married and went on a honeymoon?" Buffy asked incredulous as the demon nodded wildly.

~+~

Buffy sat on the chair with her hands buried in her hair.

“I married Spike?"

“I guess so." Willow spoke softly as she patted her best friend’s back.

“How cool can that be?" Dawn asked with a smile that went from one ear to the other.

“It’s not cool, Dawn. It-it’s… wrong." Buffy lifted her head to look at her younger sister who was now rolling her eyes.

“It’s just a parallel universe. It’s not like you-you’ve actually married him, Buffy." Tara tried to reason.

“But…" The Slayer trailed off and let out a heavy sigh as she turned to look at the demon sitting in the corner playing with its fingers.

Outside, evening had fallen and it was dark. Xander, Anya, Spike and Sam had gone out to get pizzas. It was going to be a long research night.

“I’m gonna marry her!" The vampire kept saying over and over.

“You’re not going to marry her. You married her, in a parallel universe." Sam corrected him and instantly got a painful image from him. “Fine, I’ll just shut up then." The redhead groaned as she leaned on the counter of the Pizza place. She stared through the large windows and saw Anya and Xander talking in the car.

Suddenly, the vampire’s eyes widened:

“Can you read little ET’s mind?"

“I told you I can’t read mind-“ she stopped in mid-sentence as another aching ‘illustration’ assaulted her. “I only get pummelled by horrible pictures coming from everyone’s head." She grumbled. “ And yes, I got a very pretty one of you’re wedding. You look kind of cute in a tuxedo by the way."

“What was it like? Where? How did-“

“Hey! Question-man!" Sam held up her hand as she tried to stop the avalanche of question being thrown at her. “One at a time."

“Where was-“ he started but she cut him off as 4 family sized boxes of pizza were set in front of them.

“Pizza’s done!" she said with an evil grin picking them up and headed for the door.

“Hey! Come here, we can’t talk in the car, Anya and Xander…" The vampire protested walking after her.

“We’ll talk later."

~+~

She threw feeble blows against the punching bag, her mind drifted and she didn’t notice the hollow sound of footsteps entering the training room.

“Luv…?"

She felt her heart jump up to her throat at the familiar voice. She wasn’t ready to deal with him yet. Not yet. Actually, not ever. So they had married in a parallel universe, so what? Probably the Buffy in that world was completely different from her. ‘ _She’s probably-_ ‘

Her mind and body froze as she felt cold fingers encircle her shoulder. After a few seconds she turned around to face him. He stood in front of her, light blue shirt, black jeans, army boots. The usual. Actually, no, not usual. She had never seen that shirt. Had he gone home and changed when he’d gone out for pizzas?

“Look, Spike, I don’t want to talk about this." She started as she tried to walk away but he held her by her arm.

“Don’t do this Buffy. We need to talk about it. You can’t just ignore it." He spoke softly, calmly, but there was a hint of nervousness in his tone.

“What’s to ignore, there is nothing to ignore. It won’t happen." She argued as she freed herself from his grip and started unwrapping the straps of tape she had around her knuckles.

Her eyes were buried in her task, watching as each layer peeled off to reveal sweat palms. Long after she had finished she was still fidgeting with the white cloth.

“Buffy, look at me. You can’t-“

“I can do whatever I damn well please." She snapped looking up at him, but soon regretted it as she felt her stomach twist in a familiar way.

“You knew this would eventually happen."

“What?" She yelped. “That I would marry you in a parallel universe. I’m glad to say the thought never crossed my mind."

Deep, confused wrinkles marred his forehead as he looked at her puzzled.

“A parallel universe? Buffy? What are you talking about?"

“About you and me being married in a parallel-What do you think I’m talking about?" She let out a frustrated gasp.

“Wha’? I was talking about Dawn… and college. We’re married?" The vampire asked extremely confused.

“Dawn and college?"

“Yes. Dawn’s going off to college." Suddenly, his expression changed and a hint of fear was visible in his blue eyes. He took a step towards her and rested his hands over her arms, as if he was afraid she’d faint at any second. “Buffy, did you hit your head?"

Cold, trembling fingers quickly travelled over her shoulder, under her chin and along the side of her face to brush away the few loose strands that escaped the elastic band that tied her hair into a ponytail. He carefully inspected her face and checked her for a fever.

“Spike?" she looked up, over her frown at the hand that still rested on her forehead. “What are you doing?"

“You ok?" The concern evident in his voice.

“I’m pretty sure I’m fine. You on the other hand I’m not so sure. I think you’re bordering on the insane. And why do you keep touching me?" she suddenly backed away as the closeness between them seemed too much to handle.

“What do you mean?" He stopped moving as he noticed every time he took a step toward her she would take three backwards.

“This whole… touching and… Spike we are not going back there!" she warned him.

“Back where?" he was completely out of the loop. He couldn’t even see the loop. There was no loop at all from his perspective. He was loopless.

“Back to… you know!" Seeing the frown over his eyebrows she tried to elaborate. “Me coming to your place and… well, us meeting in places and…"

“Buffy… You’re scaring me, luv. Are you sure you didn’t hit your head or drink some kind of potion or-“

“Why does everyone keep thinking that I hit my head?! And no! There is no potion or anything. I’m fine. There is nothing wrong with me. You’re the one who is acting strange." She spoke quickly without taking a breath.

“Then what’s this talk about parallel universes?" He was getting increasingly frustrated.

Suddenly, a light bulb seemed to light up in her head.

“Oh my God. You’re another one of them, aren’t you?" Her words travelled between her fingers that now covered her mouth.

“One of them? Buffy…" Before he could finish she was moving towards the door that led to the Magic Box.

“Come with me and I’ll show you." She said as he followed her. “Guys, we have another PUE. You’ll never believe what-“ she stopped in mid-sentence when she entered the next room.

“PUE? Where are you going?" The vampire shouted after her.

He jumped up as she abruptly halted her stride causing him to bump into her.

Everything was out of place. The counter was on the opposite side, next to the door and at the right corner, where the cash register used to be there was a large curtain, as if sealing off that area. There were still bookcases but they were lined up the wrong way.

“What happened?" She asked, as she remained frozen in place.

“What do you mean?"

“Why is everything turned around?"

“Nothing’s turned around. It looks exactly the same as it always is."

“No, it’s not! The counter should be over there, the table over here and what is that curtain thing?" She pointed wildly at all the oddities.

“You were the one that gave the idea to separate the research area from the rest of the shop so we wouldn’t have to close it every time we had to research, remember? When Anya made the remodelling after Glory trashed the place?"

“Glory? She trashed the place?" Slowly realisation came. “Oh my God, I am the PUE!"

Part XII  - PUE

**Universe B**

Buffy flopped down to the floor, she didn’t even bother to take the few steps that were needed to reach the nearest chair and sit on it.

“Buffy?" His voice was a mere whisper, but the confusion and fear were evident.

He squatted down and, slowly, his hand came to brush away the golden threads that framed her face before resting on her cheek.

“Talk to me, luv. What’s happening? What’s a PUE?"

“Parallel Universe Event." She was barely able to say it as her mind still tried to adjust to the thought that she was, once again, in a different world, except, this time, she was alone.

He wanted to ask her, to have her explain to him what she was talking about, but he could tell that she needed time to calm down. He pulled his legs from under himself and sat on the floor, waiting for her to make a move. Eventually, she did. She took a deep, long breath and looked up to speak:

“Let’s say I’ve just lost all my memories."

He made a move to say something as the fear gripped him once again, but she held up a hand.

“Let’s just suppose. What is this world like? What do I do? Where do I live? Where is Dawn, Xander, Anya, Willow… everyone?"

He tilted his head and she nodded:

“Just indulge me."

“You’re the Slayer. You do remember what a Slayer is, right?"

Before he could finish the question she was already nodding affirmatively.

“Dawn’s your sister. She’s graduated from High-School. She was valedictorian and she’s going to Berkeley to study to become a writer. She left an hour ago."

“Oh, my God! Dawn was valedictorian! Ah and she’s going to college! Oh, my God!" Buffy squeaked happily. “What else?"

“Hum… Xander, one of your best friends, works at a construction company. Anya, his wife slash ex-vengeance demon, runs this shop with Giles, who was your watcher and works at the library downtown."

“So this Xander had the guts to set a date for the wedding and actually went through with it." She murmured to herself.

“What?"

“No, nothing. Go on!"

“Hum… Oh, Willow, your gay best friend and a pretty powerful Wicca, is still in college working on her masters’ degree and shares a dorm room with Tara, her girlfriend. That about covers the close acquaintances."

“What about… my mom?" she asked hopeful, but the moment she saw the distraught look on the vampire’s face she knew – some bad things didn’t change.

“I’m sorry, Buffy. She died, 4 years ago, of a brain tumour."

She ran her hand over her face and settled it over her forehead as she stared at floor she sat on. Everything he had told her so far had been so perfect.

“Do I still have a job at the Doublemeat Palace?" She asked without bothering to look at him.

“Doublemeat Palace? Why would you have a job there?"

“Well, to pay for the bills." She sighed.

“You have a job. Slaying?"

“Yeah, but that doesn’t pay a dime."

“Of course it does. You get a check every month."

“Huh?" she frowned and finally looked up at him. “Excuse me?"

“Almost three years ago, there was this huge demon rioting and you, as always, saved the day. Only, this time, it was actually the day and not the night. It was so bloody obvious that no one could deny it anymore. So the Mayor decided to award you a monthly income for the job you do for the city." He finished his explanation and looked at her skeptical face.

“I get paid? By city hall? You’re joking, right?"

The vampire shook his head.

“The people in this town still go around ignoring everything and pretending nothing ever happens, but…" He shrugged.

After half an hour it was clear to Buffy that this parallel world had been very similar to the one back home up to a certain point - she had still fought Glory, except, this time, Spike had actually managed to stop the Doc from cutting Dawn and Buffy had never died.

“So you saved Dawn?" She looked at him as he nodded.

He was completely unaware of what would have happened if… She shook her head as she tried to push back the memories.

“Buffy… Why are you acting like this? Don’t you remember?" He asked concerned.

She swallowed hard before speaking:

“I’m not from here."

“What? What do you-“

She held up her hand once more and continued:

“I’m from a parallel universe. Something is making the universes join momentarily and that’s why I’m here." She explained as well as she could. “In my world you never…" she trailed off.

Spike paused for a second. It just seemed too much information when he realized:

“But if you’re here, then where’s my Buffy?" Spike asked confused. “She was supposed to be in the training room, she went in there to vent out Dawn’s move to college."

“I don’t know." She answered simply.

“But what if Buffy’s…" He trailed off. This was so confusing. He was looking straight at her and yet he feared for her life because the Buffy sitting opposite him wasn’t his Buffy.

“You do realize you’re talking about me in the third person, don’t you?" Buffy raised her eyebrow and started outstretching her arms.

“Well, technically, she’s not exactly you. Things are probably different where you come from. You’ve had different experiences, therefore you have a completely -" Spike started to elaborate on his theory but she stopped him, by standing up.

“I really don’t wanna dwell on that. I just wanna go home and hopefully, this time tomorrow, I’ll be back in my own universe and you’ll have your Buffy back." She walked a few steps towards the door before stopping. “I still live at Revello Drive, right?"

The vampire nodded as he followed her out.

“Good."

~+~

**Universe A**

“Pizza!" Dawn jumped off her chair when she saw Xander and Anya walking in, closely followed by Spike and Sam.

“Knock yourself out!" The redhead smiled as she barely had time to place the boxes on the table before the young teenager was opening them.

“Where’s Buffy?" Xander asked taking a large bite from a slice.

“She’s in the back. Said she needed to think." Willow explained.

“We should check on her." Tara said softly. “She’s been there for a while."

“I’ll go." Spike immediately offered as he walked towards the back door.

Xander was about to protest but the sight of rapidly disappearing pizzas blocked his trail of thought.

A familiar mixture of angry punches and breathless gasped reached his ears before he entered the room. She was frenetically jabbing the punching bag, causing it to swing erratically in the air.

“Not now, Spike!" she said without even looking at him. “I don’t want to talk about it."

“Talk about what?" he pretended not to know what she was talking about as he came closer to her.

“Arg!" She let out a loud groan throwing one last powerful punch.

She turned to stare at him with an annoyed look on her sweaty face.

“When did you change?" She asked when she noticed his clothes.

“What do you mean change?"

“Your clothes."

“I didn’t change."

She let out an exasperate gasp.

“Whatever, I’m going home." She grumbled under her breath as she put on her jacket and started heading towards the back door.

“What about the others?" Spike asked, bringing his thumb over his shoulder and pointing toward the Magic Box.

“What about the others?" she asked with a frown pushing the backdoor open to exit the building.

“The others." He insisted.

She sighed loudly and ignored his question: “Are you coming?" she asked as he remained glued to the floor.

“Are we just going to leave them?" The vampire quickly caught up with the petite blonde.

Buffy turned to look at him with a frown, but she was too tired to get into an argument with him so she simply grunted:

“Everyone’s leaving me so…"

“Are you ok, Slayer?" He continued his questioning as they walked down the road.

“I’m fine." She gave him her trademark answer.

“You don’t-“

“Spike!" she grinded her teeth together, speeding up her pace.

~+~

**Universe B**

They walked up the steps of the front porch and Buffy’s hands automatically reached for the back pocket of her jeans.

“Damn it!" she cursed. “I left my keys on the table at the Magic Shop… and to top it off, in a parallel universe. Great, just great!"

She walked away from the door and started to round the porch looking for an open window when she heard the metallic sound of a key fitting a lock. She turned to see Spike opening the front door.

“Spike, why do you have the key to my house?" she asked afraid of the answer.

He cleared his throat and stepped into the house. Buffy quickly followed.

“Spike?"

“Well… Me and… the other Buffy are…" He hesitated.

She tilted her head forward as if encouraging him.

“You and me are…?"

“Livingtogether." He said in one breath and immediately headed toward the kitchen leaving a shock-frozen Buffy behind to pick up her jaw off the floor.

“WE ARE WHAT?" She yelled entering the tiled room after him.

“We’re living together." He repeated before gulping down a glass of cold water.

“Am I completely insane in every *single* universe besides my own? In one I marry you, in the other I’m living with you!" She shrieked, walking over to the counter and sitting down on one of the chairs that surrounded it.

The vampire seemed to take offence to her statement and growled back:

“Maybe you’re the one who’s insane and all the other Buffys are actually quite sane, ever think of that?"

She rolled her eyes at him, choosing to ignore him. Walking towards the fridge, she opened it to scan its contents. The bottom shelf was lined up with bottles filled with blood.

“Gross!" she murmured under her breath as she reached for a Tupperware.

Opening it, she was surprised to find what looked like leftovers of… something really mushy and probably yucky tasting. Her facial muscles immediately contracted at the sight and smell of it.

“God, what is this?"

“Supposedly, it’s meatloaf and mashes pees."

Buffy’s face twisted in an even more painful manner.

“Don’t make that yuck face. You made that!" he said with a grin. “I think that’s the real reason why Dawn’s going away for college. She’s fleeing from your *amazing* culinary skills."

She shot him a dirty look and dropped the Tupperware into the sink.

“I think I’ve lost my appetite. I’m going to take a shower." She murmured as she shuffled her feet on her way out of the kitchen.

~+~

**Universe A**

“Buffy are you sure you’re ok?"

“Spike, if you ask me that question one more time I swear I’ll dust you!" Buffy practically growled as she pushed the door open and entered the house.

“It’s just that you’re acting a bit strange." The vampire explained.

“I’m fine! How many times do I have to say it, for Christ sake?!"

“You don’t-“

“That’s it! You’re sleeping on the couch tonight." She practically commanded.

“What do you mean I’m sleeping on the couch? Since when do I sleep on the couch?" Spike asked completely confused.

“Since tonight!"

She didn’t even give him a chance to say anything as she stomped up the stairs leaving a very stunned vampire behind.

~+~

**Universe B**

She rested her head on the cold tiled wall and let the burning water caress her skin. She stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity, allowing it to calm and sooth her.

Sluggishly, her fingers turned the faucet and she stood up straight looking for the nearest towel. Picking it up, she wrapped it around herself, letting the rough fabric soak up the little droplets that clung to her skin. Slowly, a familiar scent of cigarettes and alcohol enveloped her – it came from the towel that cloaked her naked form.

She carefully opened the bathroom door, her head peeping out as she scanned the area. No one in sight. Quickly, holding onto the towel wrapped around her chest, she jogged her way to her room and let out a deep breath once she closed the door behind her and was safe in the privacy of her room.

It was dark, the only dim light came from the window. She scanned the room. It looked exactly the same as her own. Actually, now that she thought of it so did the entire house. She sighed when she saw the mountain of covers on the unmade bed. _Yep, some things never change._ She had always hated making her bed.

She ran her hands through her wet hair and grumbled:

“To blow-dry or not to blow-dry, that’s the question."

One glance at the inviting bed gave her the answer.

“Not to blow-dry, it is." She whispered between yawns as she dropped the towel on the floor before lying on the bed.

She reached behind her and tried to pull the covers. She froze when she heard someone grumble something from underneath them.

“Ah!" she screamed as a bleached head popped out from under the sheets and joined her in a symphony of shrieks.

They sat there for a few seconds, bellowing their lungs at each other while their hands frantically pulled the fabric to cover themselves.

“What are you doing here?!!" She yelled at him.

“I sleep here!" He shouted back.

“Well, not with me, you don’t!" She barked.

“Sorry! I forgot… I just…slipped." He was actually being honest.

He had been sleeping in that bed for the last two years and a half now. It had just become an automatic task to come up the stairs and slip into it.

“Ha! Just slipped, right! For all I know you and I aren’t even together and you just made that up so you could…" she said accusingly.

“Could what?"

“Get into bed with me!" she growled waving her hand to emphasize their situation.

“Oh come on! You don’t actually think I-"

“Prove it!" she cut him off.

“What?"

“Prove it! Prove you’ve slept with me."

“How am I supposed to do that?"

“A-ha!"

“What a-ha?"

“You can’t prove it!" She noted triumphantly.

“Bloody hell, fine! You have a funny looking birth mark on you left buttocks."

She froze for a second, but after swallowing hard she continued:

“That doesn’t prove a thing. You could have seen that during a fight or something."

“A fight that left you literally butt naked?" his scared eyebrow shot up.

She answered him by setting her lips in a straight line, waiting for the proof she had demanded.

“When you get too excited during sex, you make this cute little mewing sound and when you’re close to coming you like to squeeze-“

He was cut short as Buffy jumped across the bed and her nervous fingers came to slam against his mouth. They froze still. He sat while she slightly hovered over him, kneeling on the bed, her free hand clutching the covers against her naked and still wet form. It took a second for her mind to register their compromising position, for her heart to jump to attention and start frantically banging against her ribcage.

“Satisfied?" It was a mere whisper that left his mouth to brush over her fingers.

‘ _Not for a while._ ’ The twisted part of her mind shouted at her.

A sharp gasp escaped her parted lips as she felt him bring his lips over her index finger, lightly nipping it. Her eyelids seemed to hold the weight of the world as his tongue flickered across her flaming skin and she closed them.

“Ah, no!" She suddenly pulled away, scrambling to reach the headboard.

Spike’s eyes shot open as a cold bucket of water seemed to spill over him.

“Just-just *go*!" she yelled pulling at the covers.

She let out a shriek as the fabric moved over the vampire’s lap and a few dark curls stuck out from under it.

“Hey!" Spike protested. It was now his turn to hog the covers and hers to object.

“Get out of my bed." She demanded.

“It’s not your bed! It’s *my* girlfriend’s!" He shot back and that seemed to shut her up. “I have been sleeping here with her for almost three years now and I’m not going to go anywhere. So, if you want, *you* go sleep on the couch."

And with that, he slipped between the covers and lay on his side, back turned to her as he prepared to sleep.

“What? Well…" She gasped, still working through the shock, when a new wave of strength hit her. “Fine! Sleep if you want. I’m not going anywhere either. And be warned: if any part of your dead body so much as brushes over mine, it *will* be cut off."

~+~

**Universe A**

Spike rolled on the couch, laying belly up as he slept. His mind wandered; nasty thoughts of naked Buffy swimming behind his eyelids. He moaned as his dream seemed to become more vivid. He could swear he actually felt warm fingers traveling along his abdomen. Slowly, he pried his eyes open and smiled when he saw the Slayer kneeling on the floor, long white nightgown spreading at her feet, her hand gliding under his shirt. This was a good dream.

She stared up at him, a mischievous look in her greenish eyes, making them sparkle. Her small fingers explored the texture and feel of his stomach, strong, toned muscles contracting wildly beneath her touch as her hand moved lower and lower, pass the waistband of his black jeans.

“Ah!" he gasped, his eyes rolling back in his skull, his eyelids closing as she gripped him firmly. “God, Buffy!" The words barely came out as he suddenly felt out of breath under her ministrations.

He groaned while she nuzzled her face against his chest, slowly making her way to his neck. Somewhere, in the haziness of his mind he was able to hear her mew:

“I’m sorry…"

Her tongue flickered across the tender patch of skin right under his jaw and he let out another strangled cry. Ok, *this* was definitely the most vivid dream he had ever had. She looked, felt, God! She even smelled real. Could this *be* real? He wanted to ask her, but the words just seemed to fade out of his mind. All he could do was lay there, as she moved one of her legs between his, her chest coming to rest over his, her face remained nuzzled in the crock of his neck.

“Buffy…" he tried to speak. “Oh, God!" He groaned as her hand moved inside of his jeans, her lips brushed over his earlobe. “Is-is this…ah!… real?"

She let out a small giggle at his incoherent speech. She loved seeing him like this. So lost, so hers. Slowly, she moved over his jaw, across his cheek and found his lips, but as he craned up to kiss her, she pulled away and stared down at him. Her long blonde hair pooled around their faces, isolating them from the world.

“You’re beautiful…" He managed to breathe.

A soft smile spread across her lips and he moved upwards to catch her lips, but she pulled away, giving him another mischievous grin.

“You…" He started, when something in his mind seemed to click – Her hair. It had been tied up in a bun the whole time and he had only noticed now, that it flowed over her shoulders – it was long. “You’re hair… It’s long."

She frowned for a second before dipping down to capture his lips.

His mind raced as they kissed. ‘ _She’s not Buffy. She’s another…’_ Her hand started unbuttoning his jeans and his brain went on a permanent coffee break as she pulled her nightgown around her waist to straddle him. The vampire’s eyes shot open as he felt warm, wet flesh rubbing against his cock.

“Mmf…" he moaned and suddenly pushed her away, breaking the kiss.

She stared down at him, confusion marring her features.

“I can’t!" He breathed as he scrambled out of the couch, holding onto his jeans. “You’re not her."

“What?" 

Part XIII  - Temptation

**Universe B**

She had remained frozen-still for the last hour. Laying in bed, on her side, staring at the opened window, trying hard to ignore the male body resting behind her. She stared because every time she closed her eyes a marble-white, toned chest flashed before her. He looked exactly like her Spike. No! Not her Spike, the Spike from her universe. That was the right thing to say – the Spike from her universe.

She felt her arm tingle from under her as the numbness took over. She cursed quietly, trying to rub her limb, to get the blood flowing without stirring and risking to wake up the sleeping vampire. Still, every time she touched her arm she felt as if thousands of minuscule ants were worming their way under her skin. Slowly and as silently as possible, she moved to lay on her back, facing the ceiling. She caught her breath as the vampire stirred. ‘ _Don’t wake up, please don’t wake up._ ’ She begged him mentally. She watched from the corner of her eye as he turned to lay on his side, facing her. One of his arms swung over her head spreading it out along the headboard while the other fell across his chest, his hand crawling under him.

Her mind ordered her to look away, but she couldn’t. Silently, she too turned on her side to stare at him. He looked so calm, peaceful. The blue waves of moonlight gliding over his perfect form, bringing a glow to his platinum, tussled hair. Rustled by sleep, it began to show its true coiled nature. Free from the greasy gel and constant combing, it curled at the edges.

Buffy caught herself holding her breath as she gazed at his naked outline. The white sheet clung to his hip, leaving his chest bare to her lurking eyes. As one hand powerfully clutched the covers against her ribcage, the other wandered across the bed and reached for him. Her warm fingers contrasted with the cool, soft skin of his forearm as she moved upwards and eventually caressed his torso.

She froze in place when a guttural moan escaped his parted lips, his tongue jutting out to wet them before disappearing in his mouth.

After a few seconds, even though her mind screamed at her to stop, she moved again, brushing her hand over his skin, her body instinctively moving closer to him until their chests nearly touched. She was lost in the moment. Her heart jumped to attention as she suddenly realised that the arm he had spread out along the headboard now encircled her, his long fingers caressed the sensitive skin of her scapula.

His other arm moved. It flew around her and settled on the small of her back. She was completely trapped now. Nowhere to go. If he woke up… Her heart raced wildly, her mind shouting ‘I told you so’s at her.

She remained still as she tried to figure out how to get out of there, trying hard to ignore the feel of his naked legs intertwining with hers, her face inches from his chest. Slowly, she tried to slide away, it seemed to work for a second, but unexpectedly he moved. His arms tied around her, pulling her whole naked body against his, chest against chest, stomach against stomach and Oh my God, was that…? Oh, God it was! She could feel it, something hard and long poking her lower abdomen. She couldn’t restrain the light groan that tumbled from her lips. She looked up at his face, his eyes remained closed, but a soft smile curled his lips.

Swallowing hard, she froze when his body shifted, rolling over hers, covering her.

‘ _Oh God! He’s on top of me! Just stop this, stop this. This is…’_ Her mind melted away as his lips grazed across her collarbone, up her neck and settled on her earlobe.

“Hum…" He moaned huskily inhaling her scent. “You smell so…" He never finished his sentence as his teeth took the tender bit of flesh into his mouth to nibble at it.

The sheets rustled as he moved snake-like on top of her. His hands wandered over her entire body like a blind man trying to map out the outline of her form. Fingers brushed across her arms, her sides, her hips and back up to cup her cheek as he continued to kiss her neck. _‘Stop this, stop this…’_ Her mind repeated the old mantra over and over again as she felt his leg move over hers, lightly pushing to move her knees apart. ‘ _No!’_ it shrieked, but to her own amazement she spread her legs, allowing his hips to slip between them.

“Ah!" she let out a deep breath when she felt him hovering at her entrance.

“I had the weirdest dream…" he whispered, his lips travelling from one earlobe to the other. His voice was heavy and hoarse from slumber.

“Hum…" was the only thing that she was able to say as she felt his left hand move over her hips to keep them from moving.

Her eyes flew open when she realised she had been bucking her hips upwards, trying to… ‘ _This is wrong… No!’_

“Dreamt you’d lost your marbles." He paused taking a deep breath, his mouth still on her ear. “Said you were from a parallel universe." She felt him smile against her cheek as he moved to brush his lips over hers. “Said you didn’t want me."

“Hum…" She moaned as his hand dropped between her legs to caress the inside of her thigh, teasing her mercilessly.

“Do you want me?" He asked before his tongue swept over her lips and begged her permission to enter.

Instinctively, Buffy opened her mouth and he slipped in. His tongue slowly explored hers with restrained desire. Pulling away he repeated:

“Do." He sucked her lower lip into his mouth and released it. “You." He moved his fingers higher on the inside of her thigh, brushing over her damp nest of curls before resting on her side. “Want." His other hand moved from her neck to sweep over her breast and give it a light squeeze. “Me?" His hips moved and he positioned himself just at her entrance, one more inch and he’d be inside of her.

“Yes!" She breathed without even giving it a second thought. Her whole body begged her to say it and she did.

She felt him sluggishly push his hips towards hers, her eyes going wide at the pressure as the head of his cock began to push her swollen lips apart. Suddenly, it was gone. She watched as he faded away and literally disappeared into thin hair. She gasped at the loss. She automatically sat up, her breathing still coming in short but hard pants, her heart slamming against her chest. He was gone and she was alone, in her bed.

~+~

**Universe A**

“What?" Buffy repeated breathless. “What are you talking about?"

Spike struggled with the buttons of his jeans and eventually he gave up, choosing to simply hold onto them.

“Hum… You’re… You’re not my Buffy." He managed to say as he looked at her.

She sat up on the couch for a second, her white nightgown turning different shades of blue under the effect of the moon.

“What do you mean?" She asked standing up and walking towards him.

Instinctively, he backed away; trying to keep as much distance between them as possible. He knew that if she touched him again he wouldn’t be able to stop himself.

“Spike?" She called as she noticed him awkwardly stagger backwards. “Honey? What’s the matter?"

The vampire closed his eyes at the term she used. _Honey_ he never thought he’d ever hear her call him that.

“Just… Stay back." He begged her as he tried to swallow down all of his desire for her. It just burnt him so much.

“W-was it something I said?" Fear was evident in her voice. “Honey, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to… It’s just that…"

She took a step towards him and he backed away once more. He looked like a wounded animal trying to escape his predator. It made her stomach turn.

“Honey, please! I-“

“Stop calling me that." He tried to sound threatening but it came out like a mewed plea. Every time she said that word, his body would jump to attention; the passion would become too overwhelming.

“Why?" Her eyes became watery and bloodshot as her heart pounded in her chest. “What did I do?" the words barely came out.

“I can’t… be… with you." He managed to say.

“What?!" She asked alarmed, the fear of losing him accelerating her heartbeat.

“I can’t…" he tried to repeat it, but wasn’t able.

“Spike, I lov-“

“No!" He almost shouted. “Don’t say it!" He didn’t want to hear it from her. Not the first time. He wanted to hear it from… his Buffy.

In the meantime, the one standing in front of him looked as if someone had just pulled the ground from under her feet. The tears began to flow down her flushed cheeks and her legs started to buckle.

“What happened? I thought we… I lov-“ This time she was the one to stop herself. “Wha-what happened? I-“

He felt as if someone had just reached inside his chest and ripped his heart out. In a flash, he was next to her, his arms wrapped around her, his lips whispering soothing sounds to calm her. She nuzzled her face in his neck, her small hands crushed between their chests.

“Shhh…" His hands lightly stroked her hair, brushing the rebellious strands into place.

Suddenly, he felt her fingers dive under his shirt and caress his rippling muscles.

“Buffy…" He started, but before he could finish her lips captured his.

Hungrily, she moved her tongue and invaded his mouth as they kissed, pushing her body against his, making him react instinctively to her touch, her scent, her taste. He was lost. His hands frantically moved down her hips, pulling at the silk nightgown as he grabbed her legs and wrapped them around his waist. Her arms encircled his neck, deepening the kiss as she bucked her pelvis against his.

“Mmf…" He moaned into her mouth feeling her moist entrance against his swollen member; his jeans wrapped around his ankles.

“I-“ she tried to speak pulling away to look into his eyes. He stared back at her, frozen-still. “I lov-“ She started when, suddenly, she faded away, disappeared. Her weight, on his arms, her legs around his waist, her chest against his… gone.

The vampire gawked at the space where she was supposed to be. His arms still wrapped around invisible columns of air.

“Buffy…?" He asked confused.

~+~

Her heart raced as she remained seated in bed. After a while she managed to get up. She was still naked, but didn’t feel a hint of cold, on the contrary, her body burnt like fire; the desire stirring inside of her, emanating all around her. She could still smell him.

She crawled out of bed, her hand reached for the robe on the chair.

“Water." She thought. “I need water."

Barefoot she walked along the hall.

“Where am I?" she questioned herself out loud.

It looked like home, but was it? Was she truly at home? What universe was this? Carefully, she made her way down the stairs when she heard something. A moan.

“I….I lov-“ It sounded like… her and then silence.

“Buffy…?"

Spike! Was that Spike? Her mind raced as she took the last few steps as slowly as possible. Before she entered the room, she heard rustling, like someone… Putting their jeans on!

“Spike?" She asked watching the vampire struggle with his trousers.

The blonde immediately looked up from his fly. If he was human he would have been as red as a tomato at that moment.

“Buffy?" He replied when he finally managed to button up his jeans.

They stared at each other for a while. Each untrusting of the other.

“Are you…" He paused and rephrased: “Buffy?" Spike risked taking a step towards her.

“Spike?" She closed the distance between them.

“Parallel universes." He said.

“Sticky little monster. Married in a parallel universe."

As the vampire nodded she let out a loud sigh of relief.

“Thank God!" Without thinking, she let her arms wrap around his waist for a hug.

His hands lightly kneaded her back as he settled his chin over her head.

“Good to see you, Slayer." He said.

“I can’t believe I’m actually saying this but, glad to see you" She looked up at him. " too."

She froze. Her eyes grew wide when she felt something hard pressing against her stomach. The blood immediately rushed to her face. Her heart, which had barely been able to calm down, raced once more.

“I’m sorry, I-“ Spike started turning away, when he felt her small hand grabbing his forearm and pulling him to her.

Before he had time to register anything, her lips smashed against his, her fingers gripped the back of his neck, trying desperately to deepen the kiss. With a small impulse, her legs were tightly wrapped around his waist, her robe falling partially open with the motion. As he searched for a newfound balance he staggered backwards, eventually toppling onto the couch.

Her tongue hungrily plunged into his mouth, ravaging it while her fingers mercilessly dug into his hair, her hips bucking wildly against his.

“Buffy…" He managed to say as they fell off the couch and landed on the floor, Spike hovering over her, just like he had moments before. “Buffy… we can’t…"

He wasn’t able to finish as she craned upwards and smashed her mouth against his again, her legs tightening around him.

“Too many clothes." She breathed tearing his shirt open to reveal his perfectly shaped chest.

“Buff-“ He lost it when her small hand crawled between their bodies and dove under the waistband of his jeans.

His mouth was on hers, his fingers scrambling with the loose knot at the front of her robe, but eventually being able to open it. He gasped at the sight of her naked form; her small breasts, her lean stomach, the small nest of curls that promised him heaven.

He groaned when her hand abandoned his groin for a second, but was relieved when he saw her fidgeting with the buttons of his jeans.

“Can’t… open." She breathed and he held himself up on his forearm while his free hand reached for his fly.

In a blink of an eye it was open and his swollen shaft popped out. Frantically, she struggled to push his denims down and soon enough they were around his knees.

Placing himself at her entrance, his hands came to frame her face as he stared down on her. Her breathing was shallow, her heart pounded furiously as she waited.

“I missed you so much." He breathed before slowly moving his hips forward.

“Ah…" Buffy gasped feeling him push her folds apart and enter her. Her back arched up to meet him, to deepen their connection.

His eyes rolled back in his sockets at the feel of her heat, her tightness around him, milking him as he slowly pulled out of her, only to push back in. He repeated the motion over and over again, in a painfully slow process that made her body scream for more.

“Faster…" she barely breathed. “Faster…"

Obeying her command, he accelerated the rhythm gradually, till the point that he ravenously thrust into her, making her cry out in pleasure. As the feeling became almost unbearable and overwhelming powerful, his head fell to her neck suckling at her tender flesh there.

Buffy’s eyes went wide at the thought of him biting her. She had never let him do it, and he probably never would, but the mere insinuation that it could happen made her blood run faster, her heart beat harder.

“Spike!" She screamed as she came. The small electrical charges from between her legs spreading like wildfire through her entire body, making her buck underneath him, squeeze him till he too was tumbling over his own orgasm; a distinctly masculine groan escaping his parted lips.

Then everything was numb. As if every single part of her body weighed a ton. She couldn’t move even if she wanted to. Even if…

“They have to be here, where else would she be?" She heard Xander’s all too familiar voice coming from the other side of the front door.

Part XIV  - All the possibilities

Their gazes met for a split second. Panic bounced off each other’s wide eyes as they heard the distinct metallic sound of a key entering a lock. Reality taunted them as they noticed their position. They lay half-naked on the floor in front of the couch. Spike’s jeans were wrapped around his knees, his tattered shirt dangling off his shoulders as Buffy spread out underneath him, her robe draped at her sides, their sweaty bodies still joined together.

~+~

Sam rubbed her hands as they walked up the steps of the front porch.

“Where else could she be?" was the last thing she heard from Xander before a clear image flashed before her eyes – a naked Buffy staring wide eyed up at her – fear swimming in green irises. A strange mixture of happiness and panic gripped the redhead as she realised just what that image meant.

~+~

“Hum…Xander, I-I don’t think they’re there. M-maybe we should just go back to the Magic Box!" a stuttering female voice was heard from outside as someone still struggled with the lock.

“Sam!" Spike whispered.

In a flash, he was off the small blonde and up on his feet as he pushed the jeans over his hips and worked on the buttons. His mind raced, sending a million desperate images to the redhead outside. ‘ _Come on freckles, just give me a few bloody seconds.’_ He begged her mentally.

Buffy remained frozen on the floor for a moment, her stomach turning painfully at the sight of the vampire. The worry was carved on his features as he cursed under his breath at his denims’ reluctant fly.

~+ ~

“Since we’re here we should at least try and see if they’re… Stupid door won’t open!" Xander protested as he forced the key in the lock.

“Xander, just let me do it." Willow sighed. She didn’t know why she had given him her key in the first place. Oh, right! Because according to Mr. ‘ _I’m in a hurry_ ’ she and Tara were walking too slowly.

With on swift move, she turned the key and a click was heard. The witch had just pushed the door open when a loud screeching sound pierced everyone’s eardrums. They turned to see Sam, bent over her stomach howling in apparent pain.

“Sam! Are you ok?" Anya asked concerned as she rested a reassuring hand on the redhead’s back.

“Ow!" Sam continued to bawl as she watched the door from the corner of her eye. She had successfully caught everyone’s attention, even the little slimy demon, which was now jamming his long finger in his ear as a sign of protest.

~+~

There had been a change in his eye as he had heard the redhead’s voice from the other side of the door and the way he had said her name. It was definitely fear, she thought. Fear of getting caught literarily with his pants down. She felt a knot in her throat and for a second she thought she was going to throw up, but she swallowed it down, sat up, quickly wrapped the robe tightly around herself and disappeared up the stairs.

~+~

“Wha-what’s wrong?" Tara stammered.

“I’m… I’m…" Sam searched for an answer, but came out blank.

“Let’s get you inside and we’ll-“

“No!" Sam immediately shouted. Everyone stared at her with a frown. “I-I… hum… I…"

Suddenly, she saw a robed figure running up the stairs and got another flash from the vampire inside.

“I’m fine!" Sam quipped, standing up straight and patting her stomach with a huge relieved grin on her face.

“Are you sure?" Dawn questioned confused.

“I’m fine. Let’s go in." Sam smiled as she walked pass the stunned group and entered the household. “Hey!" she greeted when she saw Spike. Between clenched teeth, she added: “You owe me *big* time."

“Thanks, freckles." He whispered watching the gang come into the living room.

“You’re here! Where’s Buffy?" Xander asked.

“She’s upstairs." Spike answered simply.

“Why’d you come home without telling us anything?" It was Willow’s turn to question.

“Well, I got stuck with-“ Spike started, but a cold voice coming from the stairs cut him off.

“We got stuck in a parallel universe."

Everyone turned to see Buffy, fully dressed, standing by the door, her arms crossed over her chest.

“You were? What was it like?" Dawn asked.

“Pretty much the same. You guys weren’t in the Magic Box, so we decided to come here. See if we could find you." Buffy explained all too quickly. It was clear she didn’t want to talk about it anymore. She eyed the vampire standing next to Sam, across the room from her.

An awkward silence filled the room as it became obvious something had happened, but no one dared to mention it.

“So… What do we do now?" Willow asked.

“We sleep. We’ll go back to the Magic Shop in the morning. Research." Buffy practically commanded.

“Well, see you tomorrow then." The vampire said walking towards the door, closely followed by Sam.

“You guys should stay." Buffy’s cold voice echoed in the room.

“Excuse me?" Spike frowned turning to face her.

“The PUE thing. Might happen again. It’s better if we stay together." She replied.

“But it can happen at anytime, we could be just in the next room and it could happen." Spike argued.

“That’s why we are all going to sleep in the hall." She stated matter-of-factly, then turned to her sister and continued: “Dawn, go get the sleeping bags."

~+~

Spike groaned when he felt someone tugging at his shirt for the third time. Never bothering to turn to his side to face the redhead, he growled in a low voice, so as to not wake up the rest of the group:

“What do you want?"

“To know why I’m still getting *cutting* images from the seriously pissed blonde sitting by the window." Sam whispered raising her left eyebrow.

“I don’t want to talk about it. Now go to sleep, in two hours time it’ll be our watch." Spike said matter-of-factly turning in his sleeping bag, giving Sam literally the cold shoulder.

He growled low when he felt something repeatedly poke his lower back.

“What!" he exclaimed out loud, turning to face her and finding a sharp pencil in her hand.

“Either you tell me, or I’m going straight to the source." Sam warned him, tilting her head toward Buffy.

The vampire eyed her for a second, pondering if she was bold enough to go through with her threat. One look at her face was a resounding ‘yes’ to his doubt. He took a deep breath before speaking:

“We had sex."

“No kidding, Einstein. I already gathered that from the *extremely* R-rated imagery I got from you before. By the way, one flash would have been sufficient. Now you’ve definitely scarred me for life. I’m amazed I’m not in an epileptic induced coma right now from all those nasty flashes." She spoke quickly – her string of protest coming out in heavy whispers.

“Well, it’s what usually happens. We have sex and she gets to play ice-cold-bitch right after." Spike murmured angrily.

“Nice theory, but it doesn’t account for the sadistic freak show rolling in my head right now." Sam grumbled; frowning painfully as yet another picture assaulted her.

“I have no bleeding idea why she’s doing that." Spike whinged as he closed his eyes. The second he did so, he felt a sharp sting in his arm. “Hey!" he protested opening his eyes. “Give me that!" he ordered, grabbing her hand and yanking the pencil from her tight grip. “Where’d you get this?"

“It’s a weapon." Sam pouted, shrugging. “For when you’re mean and don’t want to tell me why a very pissed Slayer wants to test her bran-new juicer on my hand."

“I told you – I don’t know!"

“What’d you do?" Sam asked angrily, bringing her lips together and frowning to look more menacing, but all it did was make her look like an annoyed chimpanzee.

“Nothing." Spike whispered back. “We were…"

“I know!" The redhead quickly lifted her hand to him. "Move on and try not to visualise it. Please!" Sam spoke quickly.

“… and we heard the whelp at the door. We kinda froze and then I heard you and figured you’d get a flash and help us out. So I got up and started getting dressed as quickly as possible. She got up too and ran up the stairs to get dressed, then you came in. That’s it."

“That’s it? You sleep with a girl and the first thing you do afterwards is get up and get dressed. You didn’t say anything?!" Sam asked angrily, raising her voice.

“Hey! Me want to sleep." Its screechy voice was heard in protest.

“Shut up." Both Spike and Sam whispered, in unison.

“Sorry." It pouted and flopped back on the floor closing its eyes.

Xander turned on the couch, his heavy arm falling over Anya’s sleeping form. Sam and Spike froze for a second, their eyes scanning the room. Tara and Willow rested peacefully in a double sleeping bag and Dawn in on of her own, right next to the sofa. Buffy sat by the window, her gaze lost in the distance, she was completely involved in her painstakingly sadistic thoughts to notice the yapping going on.

“You didn’t say anything?" Sam repeated, this time in a whisper.

“What was I supposed to say: ‘Was it good for you? Hey, wanna go at it again while your friends and sister watch?’"  Spike countered sarcastically.

Sam gave him a plastic smile.

“You’re an idiot, you know that?" Sam practically stated.

“I’m an idiot?"

“Yes! One hundred years and change of living with women and you still don’t have a clue, do you? She thinks *I’m* your girlfriend! She probably thought you were worried about me catching you guys." As Sam spoke she saw realisation come to the vampire. “You made her feel like the slutty mistress."

“Oh!"

“You’re bleeding right: ‘oh’." Sam imitated Spike’s British quite successfully. “Now, get off you’re pretty little ass, go talk to her and let me get some sleep."

“Let *you* get some sleep? You were the one poking me with a bloody pencil the whole time and-“

“Spike, now!" Sam ordered.

~+~

“Hey…" Spike greeted her as she continued to look out the window, ignoring him. “We need to-“

“We don’t need to do anything. Nothing happened." Buffy muttered between clenched teeth.

“Something did happen and-“

“Forget about it, ok? Just… go to sleep or something." She grumbled under her breath.

As she refused to look at him, he moved to stand in front of her.

“We-“ He tried to reach for her but she backed away.

“Don’t touch me! Don’t ever touch me again!" she hissed at him.

“Oh! So we’re back to the old tune are we now? Should have guessed." The vampire growled.

“Will you keep it down? You’ll wake you the guys."

“I don’t bloody well care about them. I want to talk to you!" He hissed in a low voice.

At his words she made an annoyed face.

“Not even Sam?" the redhead’s name came out slobbery and filled with pent up rage.

“God! How many times do I have to tell you? We’re not… together like that." Spike sighed loudly.

“Right." She said sarcastically. “You’re not together. You’re just sleeping together!"

“Sleeping with someone means that you’re together?"

“Yes!" Buffy exclaimed exasperated.

“Then by that standard, we’re together." The vampire concluded the obvious, which left the petite blond with no answer.

Her mouth moved but no words came out eventually, a frustrated frown settled on her forehead at his reasoning.

“It’s different." She finally hissed.

Spike’s response was an obnoxious raise of his scarred eyebrow.

“I’m not living with you and I’m not sleeping with you anymore. Today was a-"

“Will you just shut up and listen to me?" The blonde asked angrily. She set her lips in a straight line and waited: “I. Have. Never. Ever. Had sex with Sam!"

He paused and waited for her response:

“You look extremely Clinton-like when you say that." She replied sarcastically.

“Grrr… Bloody hell woman! I haven’t touched any other woman since *you*. Not one! Get that through that thick skull of yours." He spoke quickly, the whispered words tumbling automatically from his mouth without being filtered or censored by his brain or ego. “I don’t want anyone but *you*! You’re the only bleeding thing I think about every second of the day. How could you think that I’d even look at another bird? Do you have any idea of just how much I love you?!“

Buffy gawked wide-eyed up at the frustrated vampire staring intensely back at her. Her heart pounded in her chest, her blood raced, her breath was caught in her throat as his words echoed in her ears.

“I…" she finally stammered. “It’s just… I…" whatever point she had been trying to make before his mini-speech was lost to her.

She swallowed hard as she tried to focus but the galloping rate of her heartbeat made it impossible to form a coherent sentence.

“It’s just that…"

“Just what?" Spike asked calmly.

“The way you… When you heard her voice, you immediately stood up... and started to get dressed like…" The knot in her stomach kept her from saying all the words.

“I was just afraid that the whelp would catch us and then you’d go all cold queen of denial on me again." Spike said truthfully.

Buffy was about to speak when, out of the corner of her eye she saw Dawn standing.

“Buffy…" she mumbled, her brain still a bit hazy from slumber.

“Dawn. Go back to bed." Buffy ordered as the teenager walked toward them.

“I had the strangest dream." Dawn rubbed her eyes as she opened her mouth wide for a deep yawn. “I dreamt I was an orange and people were running around trying to eat me. So I had to hide in the closet."

Both blondes cocked up an eyebrow at that.

“Oh, she’s definitely your sister." Spike said with a smug grin on his lips pointing at the brunette.

“And what does that mean?" Buffy asked snippily.

“That you’ve both got a few screws loose up in your noggins."

“Hey!" Both girls protested loudly and Xander to jump up to attention causing Anya to tumbled with a resounding thud to the floor.

“Ow!" She howled in pain, which in turn made it impossible for the people and little demon present in the room to continue asleep.

“Wha-what happened?" Tara stuttered as she rubbed her eyes.

“Anya fall." It noted as Dawn turned on the light.

“Xander pushed me." The ex-demon protested.

“I heard screaming." The young man defended himself from the angry looks that were shot at him.

“Spike was picking on us." Dawn finally exposed the true culprit and all eyes turned to him.

“Hey, I didn’t…" seeing the look on everyone’s faces he knew it was a lost cause and shoved his hands into the duster’s pockets.

“We’re sorry guys. Just go back to sleep." Buffy asked as she looked out of the corner of her eyes at the vampire.

Everyone grumbled loudly about how it was going to be impossible to go back to sleep now that they had been woken up. Spike just stood in the corner and watched with a grin. Humans were just so darn funny. Suddenly, he felt someone pulling at his coat. He saw Sam slightly bent over, her hand rested on her head as her eyes were squeezed shut in a clear sign that she was in pain.

“Sam! You ok? Wha-“

“Get everyone around me." She said between clenched teeth as the pain seemed to grow.

“What-“

“Now!"

“Guys!" He had a chance to call out before the ground began to shake.

“Buffy!" Dawn called out. “What’s happening?"

“Everyone around Sam, now!" Spike shouted.

Everyone stared at him.

“Now!" he growled as the walls began to disintegrate around them.

They all moved towards the couple as fast as they could, with the ground literally crumbling beneath their feet to reveal an endless black pit, at the bottom of which ran what seemed like… a river of lava? What the hell?

In the middle of the chaos, Buffy watched as Sam disappeared into thin air in front of her very eyes. The split second that the ground they stood on vanished to let them fall to their deaths a bright white light engulfed them all.

“What’s happening?" Dawn yelled out of the top of her lungs over the howling of violent winds and various volcanic explosions that echoed in the distance. She looked around to find an arid landscape, carved by deep precipices, which they magically hovered over, protected in the globe shaped glow that now encircled them.

They all held their breaths as, suddenly, flames licked their way up to them and a ball of fire swallow them up. When Anya managed to pry one eye open she was met by the overwhelming sight of being completely surrounded by fire and yet she was totally immune to its burning properties. Gathering all the strength she could muster she reached for the white light that stood between her and the inferno, it felt… warm.

“Xander!" She exhaled sharply, nudging at her fiancée.

Opening his eyes he gasped. He was still alive. Soon, everyone imitated him and looked at the strange spectacle that surrounded them. And then everything was gone. Just darkness in the distance, the only light coming from the sphere that engulfed them. Buffy’s heart pounded in her chest as her Slayer senses told her this was merely the calm before the storm.

Suddenly… FLASH. Around them, the scenery changed at a frightening pace, as if they were inside a TV while someone outside frantically zapped through all the available channels.

Thick forests, strange animals jumping from branch to branch, deserts, tall alien-looking buildings rising from the sands only to be washed out by a giant tsunami as a new ocean spread out over them, 10 feet long sharks swimming around them as they remained safe in their protective globe. Everything.

Everything achievable or imaginable was displayed in front of their eyes. All the possibilities… all the choices… all the universes.

Part XV  - Forgotten

A distant, muffled moan filtered through her ears as consciousness sneaked up on her. Slowly, the ache in her limbs made itself known, along with a painful throbbing in her temples. She tried to move but it proved to be an impossible task for the time being. She pried her eyelids open to find herself staring up at a creamy white ceiling. She turned her head and realised she was laying in the middle of her living room. To her left Willow and Tara’s still forms were collapsed on the floor. A little further away was and equally unconscious Dawn. Gathering up all of her strength, Buffy was able to painfully prop herself up on her forearms. She dragged her niggling body across the living room, until she reached her sister.

“Dawn…" she called out in a croaky voice as her hand ran across the young girl’s cheek.

She didn’t stir and the Slayer felt her heart jump to attention as her fingers slipped under the turtleneck sweater to rest on the soft skin of her neck. Relief washed over her when she found a steady pulse throbbing against her hand.

“Dawn…" she whispered again.

Slowly, the young teen’s body seemed to respond to the hoarse voice that called her name. Her eyelids flickered open.

“Buffy…?" she asked as her blurry vision began to focus on two large green eyes.

“Are you ok?" Buffy asked worriedly.

Dawn swallowed dryly and nodded scanning the rest of the room to find five unconscious bodies scattered through the living room. Anya was slumped against a wall, Xander was splayed across the couch, Willow and Tara laid at his feet and It’s scrawny little form peeked from behind the armchair.

“Wha-“ Dawn swallowed the acid taste her mouth and continued: “What happened?"

“Ah…" a muffled moan escaped Anya’s parted lips as she began to stir.

Slowly, everyone in the room joined in with their own laments as consciousness arrived in full force. They stared at each other in silence; the memories of what had just happened rushing them.

“Bloody hell." The familiar London accent broke the stillness between them as a platinum head popped up from behind the couch.

Spike massaged the back of his head trying, at the same time, to steady his legs. His hands came to rest on his face rubbing his eyelids.

“Where is Sam?" Willow asked, scanning the room for the missing redhead.

“She disappeared right before…" Buffy trailed off when she noticed Spike staring up into thin air as if he were seeing something. “Spike…?"

He didn’t answer, merely stood there, eyes wide and glassy gazing into nothingness.

“Sam…" They heard him whisper as he took a step closer to whatever he was seeing.

“Spike, what is it?" Buffy insisted, standing up and crossing the room.

The motion caught in the corner of his eyes seemed to snap him out of his daze and he looked back at the rest of the group, which now stood still gawking at the vampire.

His brow furrowed as realisation came to him.

“You can’t see her?" he asked confused.

“See what?" Anya questioned.

Spike’s gaze drifted from the spot up in the air to the rest of the group and then back again.

“Her!" He pointed upwards.

The gang turned to look at the spot he was pointing to. Nothing, there was nothing there.

“She’s right there!" The vampire insisted.

“What are you talking about?" Buffy asked.

“Sam! She’s there just hovering in mid air."

A confused frown settled collectively on the group’s eyebrows as they failed to see anything.

“She’s…" he trailed off looking up at the spectacle.

Her wilting form hovered in mid air, her arms and head falling loosely backwards, the red locks of her hair cascading down her arched back as a weak pulsating glow emanated from her motionless body.

In awe, the vampire took a step closer and reached for her. A small gasp escaped his lips when his hand ran straight through her as if she were a mere illusion.

The gang watched as Spike stepped forward and slowly waved his hand in the air.

“Sam…" he called out. She didn’t move, just remained there, slumped as if hanging by a noose tied around her chest.

Suddenly, the soft white light that radiated from her was gone and a dark, black glow replaced it. The vampire immediately stepped back as he watched her start to convulse. Her arms and legs shook erratically as thin murky strings of light began to appear all over her. Soon, thousands of long snake-shaped strings crawled around her limbs and chest, twisting and turning.

Spike frozen in place as the eerie spectacle unfolded before his eyes. Then, as quickly as they had appeared, the black strings of light were gone, leaving only Sam’s hanging form to dangle in mid air.

The group watched the intricate range of emotions displayed on the vampire’s face – fear, awe, panic, terror. What was he seeing? Before they had time to ask it out loud, they had their answer. Out of nowhere, Sam’s slumped form appeared in mid air, right on the spot the vampire had been staring up at.

They all watched as her limp body bobbed up and down for a few seconds before crashing to the floor with a loud thud.

“Sam!"

Spike seemed to be the first to wake up from the collective daze. In a flash, he was kneeling by her side, his hand brushing the fiery locks away from her face. Soon, the rest of the group joined him.

“What happened?" Willow asked.

“I don’t know." The vampire answered, his eyes never leaving the unconscious girl.

“We better get her to a hospital." Dawn offered.

“And say what? Excuse me doctor, could you take a look at my friend, she seems to have had a slight case of ‘hanging up in the mid air’?" Anya asked sarcastically.

“We better get her upstairs."

Before Buffy could finish her sentence, Spike had already crawled his hands under Sam’s legs and neck, swept her up into his arms and was making his way to the first floor of the house.

~+~

“How is she?" Dawn asked nervously rubbing her hands together when she saw Willow come into the kitchen.

“She seems to be ok." The witch answered.

“What’s wrong with her?" It was Buffy’s turn to question.

“I can’t find anything wrong with her, not physically."

“Maybe magic?" It piped up from his spot in the corner.

“Tara is doing a spell right now, to see if that’s it." Willow informed the group.

There was silence for a second as they looked at each other. Millions of questions ran through their minds, only one thing seemed to be clear – Sam had saved them and that had probably caused her current catatonic state.

Buffy watched from the corner of her eyes, observing the vampire who paced nervously in the living room. He hadn’t said a word since he had taken Sam up to Buffy’s room and laid her on the bed. He had simply run his hand over the redhead’s paled cheek and made his way downstairs, leaving Sam in Willow, Tara and Anya’s care.

The Slayer stood up and walked out of the kitchen. She remained motionless at the doorway to the living room, leaning slightly against the threshold, watching him.

Her scent was the first thing that alerted him to her presence, but he continued to pace around, drowned in his thoughts. They stayed that way for a few moments, lingering in a comfortable silence as Buffy waited for him to speak.

“Is she going to be ok?" He finally asked, coming to a halt, his eyes glued to the floor.

“We don’t know yet." She answered in a low voice.

He swallowed hard before looking up at her.

“I don’t know what she is." He stated simply. “She just came by one night and said she was there to protect me." He paused before adding: “She’s not evil. She saved us."

“I know."

“I-“ The vampire was cut off as the sound of someone bursting through a door echoed in the room.

Three or four footsteps were heard before a tired, breathless Giles appeared before them.

“Buffy! Oh, thank God you’re alright!" the ex-watcher gasped.

“Giles! What are you doing here?" Buffy exclaimed as she helped Giles make his way to the couch.

He plopped onto the comfortable sofa, taking huge gulps of air, while the rest of the gang walked into the room.

“I…" He gasped once again, still breathless.

He watched as everyone gathered around him.

“Giles!" A squeaky voice piped up as It popped his head from behind Willow.

“Oh, God! What is that thing?" the ex-librarian asked giving the creature a disgusted look.

It’s lower lip jutted out for a painful pout as he recoiled to a corner.

“It’s a Khind’Ara demon." Anya replied.

“What is it doing here?" The man questioned.

“It’s…" Dawn started, but soon got caught up in figuring out how to explain the situation to the librarian.

“It’s a long story." Buffy cut in, taking a seat next to Giles. “What are you doing here?"

He never answered, merely reached for the remote control that lay on the coffee table and turned on the TV. They all watched as the first images flickered on the screen.

_‘Two more bodies were found, this time at a local bar in Sunnydale. No cause of death has been established although, apparently, these corpses also showed clear signs of drowning much like the other 10 cadavers found earlier today.’_

The reporter spoke quickly as behind her the coroner’s department dragged two bagged bodies into a van.

The news continued with strange reports of a series of deaths of the most bizarre causes: spontaneous combustion in the middle of the street, hypothermia in a restaurant, two or three carcasses found half devoured in their own homes with no signs of forced entrance.

They watched in silence until Giles finally turned off the TV.

“We’ve got big trouble." He stated simply.

“It’s because of the universe mixing thing!" Xander spoke, still staring at the black screen. “While we were in Sam’s bubbly thing, everyone else was outside." The young man looked back at the gang as realisation hit them.

“Sam? Who’s Sam?" Giles asked confused.

Everyone looked at each other and back to Spike. No one really had the answer.

“We don’t know who she is." Buffy was the one to speak. “All we know is that she was the one who protected us when…" She trailed off, taking a moment to consider her choice of words. “Something strange has been happening, Giles. The universes are getting all-“

“Mixed up." The ex-watcher completed her phrase.

“How did you know?" Anya questioned with a frown.

“Back home, we detected the disturbance, but it’s only affecting Sunnydale, for now. I got on the first plane here as soon as I could." Giles explained.

“What’s causing this?" Willow asked.

“We don’t know yet. We think someone or something might be meddling with the natural order of things and that is causing a powerful unbalance and as a result different universes seem to be clashing together." The ex-librarian offered.

“How do we figure out who is doing the unbalancing?" Anya asked.

Giles simply looked at her - a blank expression on his face.

“Giles!" Tara’s soft voice was heard from behind the crowd that still gathered around the librarian. “Wha-what are you doing here?"

“Trying to help." He answered turning to Buffy as he continued. “We have to research this. I don’t think we have much time. This last event was really strong and the next time it’ll only be worse."

As the two continued to speak, the vampire slipped behind the couch to reach Tara. In a low voice he asked:

“Is she going to be ok?"

Tara shook her head: “I-I don’t know. There doesn’t seem to be anything magically wrong with her. All we can do now is wait."

Without another word the vampire moved behind her and walked up the stairs unnoticed by the rest of the gang.

~+~

Slowly, he closed the door behind him, careful not to make too much noise. She laid on her back, motionless, eyes closed, auburn locks scattered over the white pillow. He stood by the foot of the bed for a few minutes before taking a seat next to her still form.

~+~

“So he’s from a parallel universe?" Giles asked with a frown as he stared at the strange creature fumbling with the remote in its scrawny hands.

Buffy nodded.

“And that’s not the worst." Xander started. “Guess who Buffy’s married to over there?"

“Xander!" Willow scolded between clenched teeth when she saw the blush take over the Slayer’s pale cheeks.

“To Spike! Isn’t that hilarious?" the young man laughed, but no one joined in.

“Well, we don’t know what happened in that universe, so…"

Everyone froze and stared at Giles as if he had grown a second head.

“What?" Xander exclaimed confused. “How can you be so carefree about this? We’re talking about Spike, here." The young man insisted looking around the room, but failed to find the vampire. “Speaking of evil dead, where did he go?"

“He went upstairs to check on Sam." Tara piped up.

“Who is Sam?" Giles questioned once more.

Everyone remained in silence and Buffy was the one to break the stillness:

“We really don’t know."

At her answer the librarian furrowed his brow.

“All we know is that she just showed up one night saying that she was here to protect Spike and that she saved us when the whole… thing happened." The slayer explained.

“Maybe she’s the one causing the unbalance." Giles offered.

Everyone looked at each other. Could it be?

~+~

Spike watched her in silence when she suddenly stirred. A low moan escaped her parted lips as she slowly turned on the bed, her shirt twisting slightly as she did so, her shoulder slipping out from under the white fabric. Instinctively, the vampire reached for the material to cover the white, smooth skin when something caught his attention – a small, reddened, circle-shaped mark below her sharp collarbone.

A deep frown settled over his eyebrows as he contemplated it. There was something extremely familiar about it. What was it? As he questioned himself, Sam continued to stir sluggishly, turning her head to face Spike. Her eyelids flickered a bit, but she was still in a daze when she looked at him from under hooded eyes.

“Hum…" she mumbled hoarsely as the vampire continued to stare at the mark. “William…?"

The word came out as a mere whisper but it seemed to unlock something inside him. Suddenly, all of his senses were heighten, her soft scent of jasmine intensified causing his nostrils to flare, her scarlet curls, her pale complexion, her obsidian eyes, all of them scattered pieces of a long lost puzzle that now seemed to come together to draw the picture of a small child. Long forgotten silly giggles echoed in his ears, blurred flashes of the past flickered before his dazed eyes – a laugh, a glimpse of a blue dress, pieces of a black board scattered on the floor. He pulled back for a second as the memories seemed to literally assault his mind. Without thinking, the name tumbled from his mouth:

“Samara…?"

A partially conscious Sam looked back at him, a hint of fear and uncertainty swimming in her black eyes.

“Hello… William." She breathed.

Part XVI  - Remembered

A screaming silence took over the room but her words still echoed loudly in his ears. He stared, wide eyed at the now seemingly small creature lying on the bed, wrapped up in a thin white sheet. She didn’t move, simply looked up at him, a mixture of fear and anticipation swimming in her ebony eyes.

He opened and closed his mouth repeatedly, like a fish out of water, trying to find the words, but they escaped him as the memories, now clearer, continued to rush him.

“Are you just gonna sit there and stare at me all day? Cause it’s really starting to scare me."

She regretted the words the moment she spoke them. She had intended to put an end to the nerve-racking silence that engulfed them, but failed miserably. She had meant to sound cool and calm, but the faltering of her voice testified her unease. Nervously, she fingered the edge of the sheet that covered her, patiently waiting for him to say something, but he never did. He seemed to be in a daze. Colleting his memories, trying to make sense of what was happening.

“Well, I think I’ll go to the bathroom, since you-“ She started to move, her legs swinging to the other side of the bed, when she felt a cold hand on her arm.

She waited a few seconds before looking at him, under hooded eyes.

“H…" He cleared his throat, swallowing hard when he realised he wasn’t able to say the word. “How?"

“A lot of exercise and a very healthy diet make you live longer." She attempted to joke, but the look on his face told her it wasn’t the time for gags. Even so, she added, tilting her head: “A very, very healthy diet?"

“Quit with the funnies Samara and just tell me." He said in a grave tone.

“Don’t call me that. I’m not her anymore." She spoke seriously for the first time, pulling herself free of his grip and looking away from him.

“How?" He tried to calm down; the word coming out in a whisper.

A few moments passed before she was able to look up at him. With a ghost of a smile she spoke:

“I guess those kids were right. I am a freak, except I’m a good kind of freak."

He wanted to ask so many questions, to put an end to all the doubts that now clouded his thoughts, but he decided it was best to let her take her time.

“I’m not that little redhead, freckled girl that you used to pick on when we were in school. I haven’t been her in ages." A soft smile settled on her lips as she remembered those long forgotten days. She glanced at a rebellious strand that curled its way over her shoulder and took it between her pale fingers. “Ok, so I’m still a carrot head…" Her hand travelled over her nose. “And I might still have a few freckles." She frowned a bit, pausing and then a smirk lit up her face. “You know, I never thought I’d say this but... I miss those days. I mean, not the name-calling and bigotry of all the other kids, but… the small things, you know? Like…" she paused when she remembered a specific moment in time. “Like smashing the blackboard on you head when you called me carrot top and pulled my hair."

That last sentence made him chuckle and instinctively his hand reached for the back of his head and massaged it.

“Like watching you drooling over Cecily, even though she never gave you a moment’s notice. I told you she would never get over the whole different social classes thing." She saw the painful look on his face and decided to quickly change the subject. She sighed audibly and started to speak: “Anyway… To make a long story short, I guess I really was special, I mean, not in a Jewish kid in an entirely protestant neighbourhood kind of way but in a potential otherworldly being kind of way." She tried to joke about it.

“What?!" Spike asked dumbstruck.

“I-“

She started to explain when a light knock was heard at the door. Spike didn’t even turn to look at whoever had interrupted them, he simply growled:

“Not now. Go away." He could feel the person behind him take a deep breath to say something, but he cut her off. “Later!"

Next thing he heard was the familiar clicking sound of a door being closed.

“You were saying…" He spoke calmly.

Sam frowned a bit and then asked:

“Are you two love birds fighting again?"

“What? No, I just want to know what happened to you." He explained.

“Well too bad, pal. Cause I’m not saying anything until you go out there and apologise to her." Sam stated matter-of-factly, crossing her arms over her chest.

“What? No!" He insisted.

“Forget it. Not a word."

“You’re just doing this because you’re afraid to tell me something Samara. I know you." He protested.

“Maybe. Or maybe I’m just doing this because I don’t want you ruining the one good thing you’ve had in... Oh, lets say… forever! over such a stupid thing. I can tell you later. Now go out there and apologise already." She finished her little speech with a deep frown and settled her mouth in a straight line in a clear sign that she wasn’t planning on changing her mind… ever!

Reluctantly, the vampire stood up and dragged his feet across the room, a pout on his lips.

“Spike!" She called out and he turned to face her. “The pouting thing…" she pointed at his mouth. “not working on me anymore. It took about a hundred years, but I’m no longer under its evil thrall." She gave him a wide smile.

He shook his head and reached for the doorknob when he heard her calling him. He turned to face her with an annoyed look on his face.

“I’m hungry. Bring me some food when you’ve finished grovelling."

He sighed audibly and prepared to turn the knob when…

“Oh, Spike! One more thing."

“Am I ever gonna leave this room?" He asked exasperated.

“Eventually… Maybe." She smiled at him. “Bring me chocolate. I need chocolate."

“What is it with you and chocolate?" He asked with a frown.

“I never got to eat it when I was a kid. I’m compensating." With a wide grin and a wave of her hand in a sign of dismissal she shushed him. “Now go! Shush! Go grovel!"

Finally, Spike was able to leave the room and make his way down the stairs. He froze as the conversation from the living room reached his ears before he made his presence known.

“So you think Sam is causing this?" Anya’s voice questioned.

“I don’t know. But we can’t discard that option." Giles explained as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. “What do we know about this girl? All we know is that all this started to happen when she showed up. We have to-"

“No one’s going anywhere near Sam." Spike’s voice hovered into the living room and everyone turned to stare at him. The only people missing were the two witches.

“Spike, we don’t know who or what she –“ Giles started but was soon cut off by the vampire that remained frozen in place.

“I know her." He stated simply. “And she’s not the one causing this."

“You know her?" The ex-librarian enquired.

“We’ve only known her for a couple of weeks you can’t-“ It was Buffy’s turn to be interrupted.

“I’ve known her longer than that, believe me."

Everyone in the room frowned and waited for the bleached vampire to elaborate, but he never did.

“What do you mean?" Xander spoke.

Spike’s facial muscles contracted as he pondered which words to use. His jaw clenched and unclenched repeatedly, enhancing his chiselled cheekbones, pale lips being pushed together in the process. After a few moments and a loud sigh he started:

“I’ve know Samara since I was five."

“What?!" Giles almost choked.

“Samara? She’s Samantha." Anya spoke up.

“She was a neighbour of mine. Only Jewish family in a not so friendly Protestant block. Especially not back in the 19th. Long story short, she was an outcast, I was an outcast, we stuck together." He folded his arms over his chest as he finished his small narrative.

Everyone stared at him in disbelief. Giles was the first to ask the question that drummed in everyone’s mind:

“How is it possible?"

“I don’t know." Was Spike’s immediate response.

“You’ve known this all along and didn’t tell us?" Buffy questioned, a hint of anger boiling up in her tone. “When were you planning on telling us? When you’re little girlfriend destroyed all of Sunnydale and killed us?"

“My little girlfriend, as you put it, just saved our asses a few hours ago." Spike snapped back. “And I couldn’t remember her up until just a minute ago."

“You couldn’t remember her?" Buffy asked unconvinced.

“No." Was his simple reply.

“Well, maybe she was the one who orchestrated this whole thing from the beginning. Ever think about that? Either that or she has some serious ESP, considering she was able to predict the exact moment when it was going to happen." Buffy fought back.

“She has a point." Anya piped up.

“She’s not the one causing this." He hissed between clenched teeth. “And you know it Slayer."

Buffy winced at the use of her title. She hated when he did that, but she swallowed hard and snapped back as she stood up from her place and crossed the room towards him:

“No, I don’t know. I don’t know anything about her. Where she comes from, what she is. Nothing!"

It, who had remained quiet during the entire conversation, winced as the two blondes now stood head-to-head, staring each other down, Buffy’s first clenching and unclenching.

“No fight." It squeaked.

“Shut up!" The two blondes shouted in unison, not even bothering to look at the skinny little creature.

“You say that she’s a good old friend from back in the day, but you can’t explain what she’s doing her, or how it’s even possible that she is here."

“She would have told me if you hadn’t butted in like you always do." He growled as he towered over her small form.

“I’m the Slayer. It’s my *job* to butt in when lives are at stake." She looked up at him shooting daggers from her eyes.

“Being the Slayer doesn’t give you the right to stick your nose in other people’s personal life."

“Reality check Spike, you’re *not* a person, and for all I know neither is your buddy upstairs." She hissed. “And speaking of that…" she started to move around him to head toward the stairs when she felt herself being yanked back into place by a cold, strong grip.

“You stay away from her, Slayer." He spoke in a low tone, which sent chills down everyone’s back except for the fired up blond that stood before him, tilting her head upwards in a defying stare.

“Or what?" She said between clenched teeth.

The vampire was about to answer, when loud stomping footsteps were heard down the stairs and soon two breathless witches were standing in front of them.

“Tara found something." Willow spoke between deep gulps of air.

Everyone in the room froze, including It.

“She did a tracking spell. Someone’s been using some serious Magic, right here in Sunnydale." The redhead continued to explain to the silent audience.

“We-we think it’s what’s causing all the chaos." Tara piped up.

“I’ve never seen anything like it, Giles. Tara almost got knocked unconscious when she tried to track it down." Willow spoke, throwing a supportive glance towards the taller witch.

“It doesn’t make sense. Something that big… the demons would have picked up on it. Spike would have picked up on it." Giles argued.

“Maybe that’s just something else Spike’s been hiding from us." Buffy hissed in a low voice, earning a cold look from the vampire who still stood next to her.

“No. We think that whoever or whatever is doing this is being really careful about covering its tracks. That’s why Tara couldn’t track it down. It’s using some kind of spell to hide the magic." Willow explained.

“Can you find a way to break it?" Giles asked, standing up.

“I-I don’t know. Maybe. But it’s gonna take some time and I-I need some things from the Magic Box."

“Then that’s what we’ll do." Giles decided as he started to head towards the front door.

“What if shifting happens again?" Xander asked causing Giles to stop in his tracks.

“I don’t think it will." Willow offered. “The last shift was really strong. It took a lot of magic to cause it, I don’t think whoever or whatever is doing it can pull it off again anytime soon."

They were about to move again when Anya asked:

“What about Sam?"

The ex-librarian pondered for a second and then spoke:

“Anya, Tara, Willow and Xander come with me. Buffy and Spike stay here and watch her."

Buffy was about to protest, but didn’t even get a chance as the ex-watcher turned his back and left the household; the rest of the group trailing behind.

The two blondes stood in the middle of the living room, looking at each other in disgust for a few moments until Spike let out a deep sigh and headed up the stairs:

“I’ll check on her." He mumbled under his breath, leaving Buffy behind.

“Fine." She yelled up at his retreating form, crossing her arms over her chest and plopping onto the couch.

In the corner of the room, It scratched its slimy head, frowning a bit as he squeaked:

“And me?"

Buffy sighed loudly, glancing towards the scrawny creature but said nothing.

~+~

Spike walked into the room and closed the door behind him.

“Sam, we need to-“ He stopped in mid sentence as he turned to see her slumbering form curled up into a little ball on the bed.

He smiled lightly, coming closer and sitting on the edge of the mattress. He sat silently for a long time, just looking down on her, watching her chest rise and fall in a monotonous rhythm.

~+~

“Will you stop walking around in circles? You’re making me nauseous." Buffy grumbled from her spot on the couch.

It finally came to a halt, turning to face her, a deep frown over its eyes.

“Me hungry!" He grumbled in a high-pitched voice.

Buffy sighed audibly as she forced her body to stand and walk into the kitchen. She leaned on the refrigerator door, staring at its contents. Reaching in, she grabbed a crunched up pizza box and set it on the counter. Her nose wrinkled up instantly when she opened it and saw the three day old pizza laying inside. Without a word she picked the box up and walked over to the garbage disposal.

“No!" It squealed, quickly making its way towards her in his ET way of walking. It was just so strange.

It’s long, scrawny arms reached for the box and before Buffy could even say anything, the red carton was in It’s mouth and making its way to the strange creature’s stomach.

“Oh, that’s disgusting!" Buffy mumbled as her facial muscled crunched up in revulsion.

It simply licked its lips and tapped its belly in a clear sign of satisfaction, but…

“More!" it squeaked looking up at the blonde with huge, pleading eyes.

“What? You just ate half of a family sized pizza. Granted it was rotting, but it’s still half of a family sized pizza." Buffy protested.

“More!" It shrilled again, its lower lip jutting out in the cutest little pout.

It took all of Buffy’s strength to stop herself from going: “Aw!". Instead, she opened the fridge once more and took out a Tupperware.

“We’ve got-“ Before she could finish her sentence, It’s arms reached out in a flash, took the box from her hand and dropped it into its mouth which acquired the rectangular shape of the Tupperware.

“Hey, give me back my Tupperware." Buffy cried out reaching for the creature, but it slipped away.

Soon, the two were running around in circles in the kitchen, a mad Slayer chasing a starved Khind’Ara demon.

“Give it back!" she cried out when she finally managed to grab a hold on him by its skinny arm.

But it didn’t last long as he slipped away, running a few feet before stopping and turning to face her with a triumphant grin that exposed part of the box that was still in his mouth. Moments later a loud gulping sound was heard in the kitchen and It was running into the living room.

“Why you little… I’m gonna-" The Slayer cried out starting to chase after him when she bumped into someone coming down the stairs. She tumbled to the floor, landing on her behind, and looked up to find a very pissed vampire staring down at her.

**Part XVII – Khind’Ara Effect**

“What are you doing, Slayer?" Spike grumbled.

Still sitting on the floor, she looked up at him from between a few dishevelled locks that escaped her ponytail. Huffing, in a frustrated attempt to get her hair out of the way, she grumbled:

“None, of your business."

And she was up and making her way into the living room with large threatening steps. The vampire sighed and followed her.

Ignoring him, she walked around the couch, squatting as she searched for the little creature. Her eyes scanned the room looking for their target:

“Here little It. I’m not gonna hurt you." She called out in a sweet tone before adding between clenched teeth. “I just want to rip your greasy head off and get my Tupperware back." Her voice returned to the original soft attitude as she continued: “Here little It. I’m not mad, you can come out now. Come out, come out wherever you are."

When she failed to get any answer she shouted:

“Get your scrawny little butt over here; you over-slimed excuse for a demon!" She shouted.

“Oh, yeah, that should do the trick." Spike mocked as he leaned against the doorframe.

She didn’t say anything opting to throw him a murderous glance instead before returning her attention to her task.

“It… come on, I’m not gonna hurt you." She looked around the room one more time.

She was about to give up when she saw a flash of the small demon running from the front door to the stairs.

In an instant, she zoomed past Spike and took the steps two-by-two. When she reached the top she turned left after It which she had just seen entering her room.

She was about to turn the knob when she felt a strong hand on her forearm. She looked up to find Spike standing next to her.

“You’re not going in there." He said coldly.

“What?! Of course I am." She said moving to open the door.

“Samara’s in there. She needs to rest." As the vampire spoke he moved to stand between her and the door. “You’re not going in there."

“Like hell I won’t." Buffy grumbled pushing him out of the way but he stood his ground.

The Slayer tried once more but it was useless. He wouldn’t budge yet she insisted, comically ending up pulling at his hand, her arms stretched out  her body pulling in the opposite direction as she tried to use her weight to her advantage. Spike looked at her from under a frown. Suddenly her hold on him slipped and she found herself sprawled on the floor. Her legs were spread out in front of her, her arms falling limply between them; her head bowed causing her face to be partially covered by a few loose strings of her blonde hair.

After a few seconds he heard a weak sound. It sounded like a…

“Buffy?" He called but she didn’t answer so he squatted down in front of her.

Stubbornly, her gaze remained glued to the floor and her shoulders started to shake a bit just as another muffled cry was heard.

“Buffy, are you… Buffy, what are you doing?" He asked with unease when she looked up and he was able to see the tears threading down her flushed cheeks. “Buffy, luv…" He was at a loss. With an unsure hand he reached out to push her hair aside but she slapped it away.

“Don’t touch me." She demanded in a babyish tone while she tried to get up.

Unfortunately, her limbs didn’t seem to be inclined to help her in her task and she ended up half-crawling, half-stumbling her way down the hall, until she plopped down in defeat half way to the stairs.

“Buffy?"

“I-I can’t mooooove." She bawled bringing her hands to cover her face. She instantly pulled them away when she felt the thick slobber dripping from her fingers onto her face. She stared at her hand between tear-filled eyes as Spike came to squat next to her again.

“What do you mean you can’t walk?"

She ignored him for a few seconds, gazing intensely at her hand when suddenly she gasped:

“Oh my God! I got It’s slime on my hands and now I’m paralyzed! I can’t walk!" She cried out in terror: “Spike, I can’t walk!"

Without a word the vampire scooped her in his arms and carried her into the bathroom kicking the door open and setting her on the toilet while he turned on the faucets.

“I’m going to be paralyzed for the rest of my life." She wailed when he came back to pick her up and carried her to the sink.

“You’re not going to be paralyzed. It’s probably just a temporary effect." He assured her as he washed the slime off her hands, careful not to touch it. “There. It’s all gone." He announced reaching for a nearby towel.

Buffy stared up at him. One of his arms was wrapped around her for support while the other brushed the towel along her hands. She was pretty sure she could stand on her own. Her coordination was a bit off, like she had had a few too many beers but she could still move. For some reason she didn’t say anything.

“Better?" He enquired letting the towel drop to the sink as he tried to pull away from her for a second. “Can you stand?"

“No." Her lie was immediate, her fingers gripping the lapels of his duster.

He tried to ignore the chill that usually ran down his spine whenever she was this close to him and spoke:

“We better get you to Dawn’s room. You need some sleep, you must be knackered."

He carried her into the adjacent room, placing her softly on the bed. For a few seconds her arms remained wrapped around the back of his neck, preventing him from moving. She looked up at him, her eyes wide and glassy from the recent crying.

“I better go check on Samara. If the little bugger’s in there he might get some of his slime on her. In the meantime, see if you can call Giles and ask him about It." He announced, standing up straight and starting to walk towards the door.

“Right. Check on your *girlfriend*." She practically spit the last word out.

He stopped in his tracks for a few seconds before walking away again.

Buffy was about to say something again but before she could he was already out the door. A deep frown settled over her eyebrows, her stomach twisting terribly at the thought of him being concerned with the redhead a few doors down the hall. Reluctantly, she picked up the receiver and dialled the familiar number of the Magic Box.

“Hello? It’s me." She said in a weak voice.

“Buffy?" Willow asked from the other side of the line.

“Yeah." She replied unenthusiastically.

“What’s up?"

“Spike loves Sam." Was her short reply as her lower lip jutted out and started trembling a bit.

“Huh?"

“I got alien goo on my hands and all he thinks about is that woman with the stupid red hair." She pouted. “They’re in my room now. *My* room, Wills. They’re probably having disgusting monkey sex in *my* room." She began to shout.

“Alien goo? Spike and Sam are having sex? Buffy, you’re not making any sense."

“I’m paralyzed and all Spike thinks about is boinking heeeeer." She wailed.

“Buffy, call down." Willow begged.

“I *am* calm." Buffy insisted child-like.

“Then why are you crying?"

“I’m not crying." She said quickly as she pawed her tears away with the back of her hand.

“Buffy, what happened?" Willow asked again.

“I was feeding It and he got my Tupperware." She paused for a second before she realised. “He still has my Tupperware! Buuuuaaaaa."

“It has you’re Tupperware."

“Yes." Buffy admitted between sobs.

“And…?"

“And I like that Tupperware a lot. It’s… It’s handy and… good."

“Good?"

“Yes."

“Buffy, do you want me to go over there?"

“Yes." She replied weakly.

“Ok, I’ll be-

“No." Buffy suddenly changed her mind.

“What?"

“I don’t want you to come over here. You have to stay there and research." The word seemed to spark the memory of something Spike had just said before he left to check on _her. Bitch!_ She shut her eyes tightly for a second, trying to find focus, when Willow’s voice coming from the receiver snapped her out of her murderous thoughts. “You need to research It."

“Research it?" Willow repeated.

“Yes."

“What’s it?"

“It it."

“Huh?"

“It."

“Buffy, I don’t-“

“IT!" Buffy shouted frustrated. “The slimy scrawny version of ET. That it!"

“Oh."

“I touched him and now I can’t move." Just as she finished speaking a new wave of self-pity took over her and she started to cry again.

“Ok. Just wait a second." Willow paused nervously setting the receiver down before turning and shouting back: “Anya, can you hand me the book on the Khind’Ara demon?"

“Why me?" Anya’s annoyed voice was heard in the distance.

“Because you were the last one to handle it. You know where it is."

There was a moment of silence and after a few seconds the ex-demon’s voice was heard again, this time, closer to the receiver.

“Here." She grumbled.

“Thank you." Willow replied. “Buffy, are you still there?"

“Yes." Buffy said weakly.

“I’m checking it now."

Just was Buffy was about to reply there was a knock on the door and before she could say anything Spike walked in.

“You know, the reason people knock is not only to announce their presence but also to know if they’re actually allowed inside. I didn’t say you could come in." Buffy protested.

“That Giles on the phone?" Spike asked, ignoring her comment.

“It’s Willow."

“Give it here." The vampire commanded reaching for the receiver.

“No!" She pouted, bringing the device closer to her chest.

Without a word Spike yanked it out of her hand, leaving Buffy to sulk, sitting on the bed, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Red?"

“Spike?"

“What’s up?"

“I can’t seem to find anything on- Oh, here it is. It’s a footnote. Oh, that’s smart!" Willow noted ironically before she quoted: “ _Beware of the thick, creamy substance that covers the entire Khind’Ara demon’s exterior. Said substance is toxic to humans and has its effects on the central nervous system, namely on the cerebellum accumulating itself there. As a result is causes muscle movements to be uncoordinated and erratic and loss of balance. It also has effects over the limbic system, causing anyone subjected to it to have exaggerated states of emotion, namely anger, happiness, sadness-_ Oh, so that’s why Buffy’s all sentimental-girl." Willow exclaimed.

“Guess so. Anything else?"

“No. Just that you become infected by the slime if you touch it or eat it. Yuck. I’m guessing Buffy’s case was the former."

“Yeah."

“Also, apparently you don’t have a problem with it since it states that it only affects humans, so you’re safe. As for how long the effect last it’s kinda hard to predict. It depends on how long the slime was in contact with her skin and how much she had on her. It could take a few minutes or a few hours."

“Thanks, Red. Any news on the other front?"

“Nothing yet. Tara is still working on breaking the magic barrier to see if we can track down whoever is using the major mojo."

“Ok. If you get anything, let us know."

“Will do. Bye."

“Bye." Spike replied hanging up.

There was a moment of silence between the two as Spike placed the receiver back in its place.

“You ok?" He asked.

“Fine." She replied, refusing to look at him, focusing her gaze on the wall opposite her.

When he turned around to leave, she quickly called out:

“Took you long enough."

“It wasn’t in her room. I think he’s gone." He replied.

She huffed.

“Samara’s ok. She’s asleep." He continued.

“Really? I thought maybe she would be plotting to kill us all." She growled to his retreating form.

He froze in place and turned around to face her. She lay on the mattress; chin defiantly raised high, her arms still locked in front of her chest.

“We’ve been through this. You know just as well as I do that she’s not the one causing this. I know her. She’d never do this."

“You know her? She was you’re little buddy back in the day before she vanished without a trace. Then suddenly she reappears over a century later and you think you know her?" She started to raise her voice, sitting up straight.

“I know her." He repeated in a low, almost threatening tone.

“You may be lust-blinded by her and the rest of the guys may think she’s soooo great but I know the truth." She said, her index finger waving frantically around until it settled pointing to her chest.

“Lust-blinded?"

“Yeah!" She replied; swinging her legs over the side of the mattress and with wobbly steps shortened the distance between them.

“Hey, I thought you couldn’t-“

“Don’t change the subject." She demanded standing right under his nose, her chin raised high.

“Change the subject? I don’t even know what the bloody hell you’re talking about, Slayer."

“Oh, yes you do! She’s probably got a spell to get all of you guys to fall for her and for some reason I’m the only one immune to it. That’s it! She probably made a-a… a like-me-a-lot spell or something."

“Huh?"

“ _Oh, she’s so pretty. Oh, she knew exactly what to get me. She knows me so well. Oh, she figured out what’s happening with the switching thing. She’s soooo smart."_ Buffy spoke in a childish voice as she walked in circles in front of him.

“Slayer, are you ok?"

“ _She has such *pretty* hair colour. I’m going to dye my hair like her._ Ha! Like that’s actually her real hair colour."

“Well… actually it is."

She stopped in her tracks, throwing him a murderous glare.

“She’s getting Dawn to dye her hair. She’s evil." She concluded setting her mouth in a straight line.

“What are you-“ He stopped when he saw her lower lip trembling and soon Buffy was wailing again:

“Everyone likes her."

“Well, she’s kind of a royal pain in the ass but she has her days, you know?"

“Everyone’s supposed to like *me*." She mumbled as a flow of tears started to thread down her cheeks and her facial muscles contracted for a painful pout.

Spike was a bit confused. She usually was really unstable, alternating from hot to cold in a flash, but this was just ridiculous. _Stupid demon slime._

“Buffy?"

“And she’s lust-blinding you. Buaaaa…"

“What?! No! She’s like a sister to me! We used to-"

“Exactly." She cut him off, hiccupping a few times before continuing between sobs. “Knowing *your* twisted mind, incest must be exhilarating fantasy number 5." She grumbled with a pout.

“Slayer, the demon gunk is getting to you." He put his hands on her shoulders and directed her towards the bed. “You better lie back down and wait for it to-“

She swatted his hands away.

“Don’t tell me what to do." She growled.

“Get into bed." He ordered.

“No." She insisted crossing her arms over her chest again and standing her ground when he came closer to her.

Without a warning he bent down and scooped her over his right shoulder, carrying her struggling form to the bed and plopping her down on the mattress.

“Stay."

“I’m not a dog. Don’t you ‘ _stay_ ’ me!" A frown settled over her forehead as she protested from her spot lying on the bed.

“Just stay there until it’s out of your system." He said turning around to leave.

“Right. So you can just go back and *check* on her." She growled sarcastically.

“Will you quit it with the jealousy fit already?" He sighed facing her.

“I’m not jealous!" She said outraged.

“Right, of course you’re not. The slightly greenish complexion you get whenever Sam’s name’s mentioned is perfectly normal." He said cockily pointing at her.

Her right hand instinctively came to rest on her cheek.

“I do not turn green." She denied vehemently, to which he simply raised his scarred eyebrow. “And I don’t care what you do. You can go in there and boink her brains out if you want. I don’t care." She stated with the tone of a stubborn child.

“Fine. Have it your way, Slayer."

“Where are you going?" She quickly asked, instantly kneeling on the mattress, her heart-skipping a beat at the sight of him turning his back on her and heading for the door.

He stopped with his hand on the knob.

“I thought you didn’t care." He supplied with a smirk as he prepared to turn the knob.

In a flash, without a single rational thought going through her mind she was off the bed and had her body was trapped between him and the door.

“I guess you do care." He murmured with a smug smile over his lips.

“I hate you." She growled just as she lunged at him, her arms wrapping themselves tightly around the back of his neck as her mouth came up to smash against his.

Spike didn’t even have time to process what had just happened and already her small fingers had found the lapels of his duster, gripping them as she backed him up against the foot of the bed. With a loud whooshing sound he tumbled onto the mattress, Buffy following him closely behind, straddling his hips.

“You’re not going anywhere near that skank." She breathed harshly between hard, bruising kisses.

The vampire, trapped under the relentless Slayer, tried to mask his surprise at her actions as he weakly retorted:

“I thought you-Ah!" He paused as she bit his lower lip. “Thought you hated me, pet." He finally managed to utter, with a lot less haughtiness than he had intended a lot more hopelessness.

Her answer to his feeble attempt at a tease was to rip his shirt open, causing three or four buttons to fly off. Her mouth abandoned his to bite and nibble its way down to his neck.

“You’re mine." She growled before biting harder into his flesh.

“Fuck." Spike gasped shutting his eyes tightly.

He opened them again to find a very pissed Slayer looking down on him.

“She’s not touching you. Ever. NO one can touch you but me." She said possessively while the nails of her right hand trailed down his chest.

“Pet, stop… It’s the demon’s slime… It’s making you horny. Luv, please…" he begged as her fingers dropped under the waistband of his jeans. A stifled growl rumbled in his throat as she encircled him. “Stop that." He asked weakly. God, the feel of her straddling him, her scent surrounding him. It was killing him.

She ignored his pleas as her mouth returned to the nape of his neck. This time her touch was more delicate. Her lips parted to taste him, her tongue came out to laved at the tender skin it found there.

“Have you any idea what it’s like? How it feels? Seeing you with her? Huh?" She asked between open-mouth kisses; her hand now moving slowly up and down his hard length. “I couldn’t sleep thinking of what you and… God, what you could be doing to her!" She finally admitted, bring her lips to suckle on his earlobe.

Spike’s eyes rolled back in their sockets and his arms wrapped themselves around her; his hands roaming over her back as he arched into her touch, his hips bucking into the small, burning hand that strained in his jeans. _You can’t do this. It’s not real. It’s the demon slime._ His mind kept shouting at him.

“And then when I saw you and her behind Doublemeat having-“ She choked a bit, the pain stirring up the anger inside of her causing her to bite into his earlobe, her free hand to fist into his dishevelled locks.

“I never touched her, Buffy…" He gasped. “I don’t know who you saw, but I never…"

“I know that now. I-It was another one of those stupid PUE." She forced out a laugh. “Kinda surreal seeing us having sex." She paused. “But it hurt so much, thinking-“

“Shhh…" He soothed her.

“And then-“

He didn’t let her finish, rolling them over to hover over her, his hands now framing her face as he looked down on her.

“Shhh… You know there could never be another girl for me." He assured her, coming down to kiss her.

She closed her eyes, feeling a wave of relief wash over her before she breathed weakly:

“I love you."

Spike froze. A flash of awe and wonder passed through his eyes for a second, just for a second and then it was gone being quickly replaced by a cool, distant look as his teeth clenched together accentuating his sharp cheekbones.

Before she knew it he was off the bed and away from her. Even though she was disoriented by the sudden change in him she was able to focus enough to prop herself up on her shoulders and ask:

“Spike, did you hear what I said?"

“Yeah, I did." He said dryly.

“Spike?"

“You better stay here until It’s slime is out of your system." And with that he was out the door.

The door had been slammed shut for a few minutes already when it finally dawned on her.

“He thinks I…" She whispered to the empty room.

She was off the bed and out the room in an instant. She made her way down the hall, her stride still a bit uneven but growing more and more coordinated and confidant with each step she took before she stopped. She dwelled for a second; her gaze drifting between the stairs and the door that lead to her room; a knot started to form in her throat, making it harder to breathe. The distant sound coming from the living room snapped her out of her thoughts and she opted for the first choice. Halfway down the stairs the noises became clearer and when she reached the hall their origin was revealed. She silently watched him, in the dark, perched on the couch, his sharp features alternating between shadow and light as the images flickering on the television set reflected themselves on his face.

She could tell the moment he became aware of her presence. Even though his expression refused to be altered, his entire body instinctively tensed up, becoming rigid almost instantly.

“Can we talk?" She asked. She smiled inwardly when she realised she was actually saying the line that usually belonged to him.

“Nothing to talk about." He replied nonchalantly, gaze still fixed on the screen in front of him.

“Spike, we need to-“

“We don’t *need* to do anything." He growled finally facing her. “Now go upstairs."

“OK, first off – don’t tell me what to do. I hate that. Never worked with Giles, definitely not going to work with you. Second, we *do* need to talk." She snapped.

“Look, Slayer…" He started standing up and walking up to her. “Just because you’re all hot and bothered don’t expect this vampire to be the one to cool you down." As he spoke he drew closer to her, his eyes narrowing in the process. “Not my fault that the demon slobber got your knickers in such a tight twist that you’ll do just about anything to get off."

Buffy’s expression hardened at that.

“I’m not here to *get off*." She hissed the last two words.

“Really?" He asked; his tone harsh and sarcastic as he tilted his head.

“Really." She stood her ground. “I just want to talk."

“Bollocks." He replied.

“What happened up there wasn’t-“

He closed the distance between them until her back was flat against the wall, her body caught between the hard concrete and his body. His forehead came to rest on the white surface just above her right shoulder while one lonely finger found its way to her collarbone, outlining the shape of the bone as it travelled towards the hollow of her neck. It dipped down her chest, causing one slightly loose button to come undone under the pressure, partially exposing her lace-clad breasts.

“Stop that…" She mewled.

He ignored her, pushing the white fabric aside and cupping her left breast. Feebly, her hand came to catch his wrist, but instead of pushing it away, it simply clung there. She held her breath when the rough surface of his thumb brushed over her hardening nipple, his mouth barely an inch from her ear.

“Come on, Slayer. No need to play games. We both know this is what you really want." She heard him whisper in a low voice as his free hand dove between her thighs to rub her through the denim of her jeans.

“No…" As the single word floated from her mouth her hips contradicted her, thrusting forward into his touch.

“Funny how your ‘ _no_ ’ sounds a lot like ‘ _yes_ ’." He murmured while his left hand continued to worry the sensitive flesh of her breast.

“Stop… please… stop…"

Spike froze. There was a moment of silence before the same words that he had just heard echoed in his head. It was her voice. The same voice, but a different tone… more pleading, begging… scared. His eyes widened. Scared of him.

A lump started to grow at the base of his throat, expanding until it closed off his airway. He felt like he had just been punched in the stomach and was now choking. _‘Vampire, here. I don’t choke.’_ the conscious side of his mind tried to reason, but there was no effect. He continued to pull sharp, shallow gulps of air into his lungs.

Buffy stared wide-eyed as he stumbled backward; her mind still in a bit of a haze.

“Spike, are you alright?" she asked watching him as he leaned against the railing of the stairs. “Spike?" She dared to come closer.

His eyes were wide and glassy, looking at nowhere in particular, unfocused. She reached for him and he immediately recoiled.

A rapid sequence of unsorted images flashed in front of his eyes. ‘ _Tiles… a tiled room…’_ He waited a second. ‘ _A bathroom._ ’ A hint of grey caught his attention. A robe... a hand pulling at the fabric… a glimpse of flesh… and then her eyes - frightened green staring back at him.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by the sharp ring of the phone.

“Spike, are you ok?" was the second thing he heard and after a few seconds he was able to focus his gaze on her. He nodded. “Are you sure?"

“Yeah." His voice was hoarse and weak, so he simply tilted his head towards the ringing phone.

Still unconvinced Buffy walked over to the table and picked up the receiver.

“Hello?"

“It’s gonna happen again." Willow’s terrified voice was heard.

“What? What do you mean?"

“Whoever is using the magic is preparing to do it again."

“I thought you said it was going to take a while." Buffy reasoned.

“Whoever is doing this is pretty strong cause they’re trying it again. If they use the magic again they’ll have to bring down the barrier they’ve put up, so we have our opening. Tara should be able to track it down. You guys gotta get here NOW. Hurry!" The tone in Willow’s voice sent a chill down Buffy’s spine. There was silence and, for a moment, all that was heard was Willow’s heavy breathing. “Buffy, hurry. Something’s happening to us."

“Willow?"

“Hurry."

“We’re on our way." Buffy replied.

Hanging up the phone she turned to see Spike with his head between his hands, sitting on the stairs.

“We have to go. It’s gonna happen again." She informed.

“I’ll get Sam. You see if you can find It." The vampire spoke, standing up and going up the stairs.

“Spike."

He stopped for a second and turned around.

“You sure you’re ok?"

“I’m fine, Summers."

Before he could reach the bedroom, the door was being opened and a stumbling Sam came out. She clung weakly to the walls as she made her way to Spike. Her hair was dishevelled. As she moved the long auburn curls tumbling down her back and her sides floated in unison with the white nightgown she was wearing.

“It’s gonna happen again." She inhaled deeply as she took another frail step before finally tumbling to the floor.

Before she could fall the vampire had his arm around her waist and was holding her up. Her hands gripped the lapels of his duster as she tried to speak:

“It’s gonna happen again."

“We know. We’re going to meet up with the others. You ok?" Spike asked. “You were getting better."

“Remember my bosses?"

Spike shook his head no. She smiled weakly.

“Well, they found out I’ve been missing work and their pretty pissed." She managed to gasp before passing out.

Quickly, he scooped her up into his arms and made his way down the stairs.

“Slayer." He called out.

“There’s no sign of It anywhere." Buffy’s voice carried from the kitchen as she entered the hall. “What happened to her?"

“I don’t know. We gotta go."

~+~

The door to the Magic Box burst open to reveal a flushed and heaving Slayer followed by Spike holding Sam’s unconscious body.

“You’re here. Thank God!" Giles gasped.

“What happened to Sam? She asleep?" Dawn questioned.

“Passed out. Don’t know what happened." Spike replied.

“Go to the back, the rest of the guys are there. You can set her down on one of the mats." Giles explained gesturing to the backroom.

Entering Spike quickly set Sam down. His hands, now free of her burden, came to brush her hair away from her face.

“Buffy." Willow exclaimed.

Buffy froze when she saw her best friend.

“Willow?"

Her once red hair was now blemished by a few black strands. When she came closer she was able to clearly see her eyes. Her pupils were dilated to a terrifying extent and the little green that was left was being invaded by the raven circle that usually bordered her iris.

“Willow? What’s happening?" Buffy asked, her worried hands coming to rest on the Wicca’s shoulders.

“She’s not the only one." Giles spoke up.

Looking around the room, the Slayer’s gaze fell over Anya’s face. Her perfect complexion was marred by deep flesh-coloured gashes that seemed to move along her skin, appearing and disappearing erratically.

“Anya?"

“It started happening just before Willow called you." Xander said; his eyes never leaving his fiancé’s.

“What’s happening here?" Buffy vocalized everyone’s thoughts.

“The universes…" Everyone turned to look at a weak Sam lying on the rubber mat. “…are fusing together."

“But that was what was happening before, what’s-“ Anya’s question was cut short:

“It’s permanent. This time, it’s not just places that are fusing. People are too." Sam paused. “You are fusing with your closest reality."

Everyone looked at each other.

“So what, in our closest reality Willow decided to be a brunette and Anya took face-carving as a hobby?" Xander couldn’t keep the harshness out of his voice. The fear of seeing his lover gasping for air as her face was constantly being distorted sparked the anger in him. “Oh, that’s a great explanation. Thank you very much!"

“Hey, back off whelp." Spike stood up and cut the distance between them until he was standing right in front of the brunette.

“All I know is your little buddy has been keeping secrets from us and I wanna know why."

“She’ll tell us when she’s good and ready." Spike hissed back.

“Well, I’m sorry but it doesn’t look like we have time for little miss ‘ _I know something you don’t know_ ’ to make up her mind." Xander growled back before stepping around Spike and heading towards Sam. “Now, are you going to tell us or-“

Before he could finish his sentence he was tumbling to the floor as the weight of a very pissed vampire fell on top of him.

“Ow." Spike howled as the chip went off.

Seeing his opening Xander threw a punch, hitting the vampire square in the face. Spike was about to retaliate when…

“Stop it. Now!"

She didn’t shout. It wasn’t a scream, but the tone of her voice made the two men freeze and look at the redheaded woman. She was half sitting up on the mat her head buried in her hands. When she looked up her eyes shone brightly as she pulled hard pants from her lungs.

“If you guys don’t hurry and figure this out, pretty soon there won’t be *anything* to fight over. Understand?" She paused again. It was growing more and more difficult to speak. “I am telling you *all* I know. I may seem very interesting and exotic to you guys, but *believe* me I am NOT that high up in the food-chain to know that much. All we know now is that someone is using some *serious* magic out there. For what purpose? We don’t know, but it’s causing all this mess so I suggest you stick to the original plan and track it down. Now!" By the time she finished speaking her skin had turned completely white, her face drained of any colour, her once flaming eyes now dim and lifeless.

“She’s right." Buffy intervened. Turning to face the girl that was standing next to Willow she asked: “Tara, do you think you can do it?"

She nodded.

“Ok, let’s get to it then."

~+~

They sat scattered around the room in silence as Giles, Dawn, Buffy and Tara prepared for the spell. Anya and Xander sat on a far corner of the room, while Spike and Sam were on the other.

“You alright, Samara?" Spike asked coming to sit next to her again.

“Will you stop asking me…" She took a sharp intake of air. “…that?" Turning sideways on the mat she added: “And don’t call me Samara."

“You always hated that name, huh?"

They both exchanged tired smiles and sat in silence for a while. A few feet from them they could see and hear Tara start to chant. She sat Indian-style in a circle, a map of Sunnydale splayed in front of her. Her right hand hovered over it and from between her fingers strings of dust floated down to the paper.

“So… You gonna tell me what’s happening to you? What you are?"

It took a second for her to gather the strength to speak, but eventually she did.

“I’m being called home." She breathed.

“Home?"

“Back where I belong."

“Will you ever quit with the cryptic attitude?" Spike sighed.

“No." She chuckled. “You wouldn’t understand."

“Try me."

She pondered the issue for a second.

“Ever hear of the Powers that Be?" She asked.

“Yeah. Supposed to be the big-cheese."

“Something like that."

“So?"

“I sort of work for them."

“Sort of?" Spike raised a scarred eyebrow.

“I’m a bit too rebellious for them."

“I bet."

The two smiled at each other.

“I lied." She spoke after a moment. “I’m not supposed to be here."

“You’re not?"

“Not supposed to protect you."

“And here I thought some grand force out there actually thought I was worth protecting." Spike joked.

“Sorry to burst your bubble." She smiled at him again.

The vampire forced out a smirk, but it was unconvincing. Seeing her lying there, pale as a ghost and gasping for air like a fish out of water, knowing that he couldn’t do anything to help her made his stomach twist painfully.

“So what made you come here? Decided to pay a visit after 100 years?"

“I knew something was going to happen." She drew a ragged breath and continued: “Didn’t want it to happen to you."

“Why me? Why not one of the other Spike’s? Like you said; infinite number out there." Spike questioned.

“You’re my Spike. My William." She replied looking up at him. “This was my home universe." She explained.

“How do you know that?"

“I can jump between plains of existence, practically read minds and a do whole load of other neat tricks and you ask me how I know this is my universe?"

“Right. Not such a hard thing to do when you put it that way." He ran his hand through his hair.

“Nope." She agreed with a smile.

There was another moment of silence between them and Tara’s soft voice served as background.

“If you think about it, there is little if any difference between you and a whole other bunch of Spike’s."

“Good to know I’m not unique." He grumbled.

“Oh, but you are. You all are. But you’re also all the same entity."

At that Spike frowned.

“It’s true." She beamed. “Remember Aristophanes. In the beginning humans were a full circle, they tried to attack the Gods, the Gods-“

“-got pissed and split them in half, casting them to the world and now man is bound to walk the hearth in search of its other half. Its soul mate. Yeah, I’ve read the book. What of it?"

“Well, I never really liked Plato’s Symposium. Not a fan so…" She paused, gathering her strength and proceeded. “…think of it this way, instead of cutting the original in half, it was cut into an infinite number and it was scattered to different universes." Another lengthy pause was needed before she could go on. “See, our ultimate goal is to gather all those pieces. It’s to find ourselves."

Spike smiled at her.

“I like that one. Very philosophical." He finally said. “So you’re telling me that we shouldn’t do anything about this universe shifting."

Sam rolled her eyes.

“Of course not. It’s not time yet. Everyone has their time, this is not it. It’s not how it’s supposed to happen."

Spike’s fingers came to intertwine themselves around hers.

“Every religion has its own version of it. Heaven, transcending… reaching Nirvana, whatever." By now her voice was so weak it was barely audible.

She closed her eyes and for a moment Spike thought she had drifted into slumber. His attention was focused on the Wicca who seemed to be finishing her spell.

“You wanted to know what I am?" Her voice brought his attention back to her. She looked up at him with glassy eyes.

Spike nodded.

“I’m just a girl who’s found all of her pieces." She replied simply.

“Tara!" Willow’s scream snapped them out of their world.

Turning to look at the blonde Wicca they found her still sitting in the middle of the circle. A painful look twisted her face, her hand gripped her chest as if she was having a heart attack and she was pulling sharp, suffocating gasps from her lungs.

“Tara, honey what’s happening?" Willow was about to reach for her when Giles’ hand on her shoulder stopped her.

“You can’t break the circle." The ex-watcher warned.

“But…"

Reluctantly, she stood back. She knew the consequences of breaking a spell circle before the spell was done. Desperate, she watched as her girlfriend bravely continued to chant. From under her hand a dark shade of crimson started to spread over the fabric of her shirt.

“Tara! She’s bleeding." Willow shouted.

By know everyone, except Sam, who still lay on the mat a bit to the side, was gathered around the circle.

A powerful light lit the map on the floor until it actually focused on a certain point. It lingered there for a few seconds before it disappeared leaving in its place a burnt hole on the paper. Tara’s tired body finally collapsed to the floor, unconscious. In a flash, Willow was at her side, her girlfriend’s head resting on her lap. Her hand reached for her neck and she let out a sigh of relief when she felt a pulse thumping under her fingers.

“She’s alive." She breathed.

Looking down at her blood soaked chest, she pushed the shirt aside to reveal a small hole on the left side, bellow her collarbone. Looking up she saw Anya, her face completely distorted. Only then did she recognise the vengeance demon’s visage that replaced Anya’s human featured.

“What’s happening to us?" Willow cried out, her hair now almost entirely black as were her eyes.

“Oh my God! This can’t be right." Giles gasped as he looked down at the map.

“What?" Xander asked coming closer.

“The magic… the energy it’s…" Willow paused for a second. “It’s coming from this room."

Part XIX - Fusion

“What do you mean the magic is coming from-“ Xander cut his sentence short when a distant roaring sound was heard. “What is that?" He questioned when the noise became louder and the lights on the ceiling started to flicker.

“It sound like-“

Giles wasn’t able to finish as the entire room suddenly began to shake. The group wobbled, trying to find balance but the shuddering grew in intensity and eventually Anya tumbled to the floor.

“Anya!" Xander cried out coming to kneel next to her.

“I’m ok." She replied over the roaring sound that engulfed them. Her hand came to rest on her distorted face. “What’s happening? I feel like… a vengeance demon."

Instinctively, Willow leaned over Tara’s unconscious body, shielding her from the debris that started to fall from the ceiling as the building started to crack under the vibrations.

“Is it an earthquake?" Dawn shouted her question.

“I don’t know." Giles replied holding onto the nearest wall for balance.

“We have to get out of here." Buffy yelled.

 “We can’t move Tara, and Sam is too weak to walk." Willow replied just as the lights went out and they were left in total darkness.

“Buffy and I will carry them." Spike spoke up kneeling down next to Sam; his heightened vampiric vision allowing him to see through the thick veil of blackness.

He was putting her arm around the back of his neck when suddenly the ceiling on the far end of the room collapsed. Instantly, the building was flooded in a mixture of shadows and glows of soft blue as the moonlight filtered through the large gap on the roof.

“Everyone move. Now!" Buffy ordered, kneeling next to Willow and Tara.

Anya stumbled onto her feet with Xander’s aid as the ground continued to shake.

“It’s happening. We can’t stop it." Spike heard Sam whisper weakly into his ear while he leaned against her to scoop her up.

Everyone froze when, as quickly as it had started, the roaring noise and shaking stopped. They eyed each other; the frightening feeling that this was merely the calm before the storm creeping into their chests.

A small bright light floating in the middle of the room caught their attention. It soared a few inches off the ground for a few seconds before a sharp, high pitch sound was heard and they saw the white glow literally tear its way through the air like lightning. Everyone’s hands immediately went to cover their ears as the shrill became too loud to bear.

Willow felt her heartbeat accelerate to a frightening speed and she drew shallow, asphyxiating breaths from her lungs.

“Willow?" Buddy called out as she stepped away from Tara to tend to her best friend. Her black eyes were wide and filled with fear. “Willow what’s-“

She stopped when she saw the witch’s trembling finger lift to point at the middle of the room. She turned to look at whatever had caught the redhead’s attention and gasped at what she saw – Willow… another Willow was sitting Indian-style in the middle of the room. She was surrounded by the bright white light, her raven hair floating around her. She was chanting something, but whatever she was saying was impossible to hear as the sharp shrill continued to sound around them.

Buffy’s eyes drifted erratically from the Willow in the middle of the room to the one at her side. The latter was now clutching her chest, her mouth partially open, and her facial muscles contorted painfully as she continued to suffocate. The Slayer watched in terror as her best friend’s body started to lift off the ground and was left hanging in midair. Willow on the other hand seemed to be unaware of her airborne state. She continued to hold onto her chest and began to jerk spasmodically as if a powerful voltage was coursing through her. After a few excruciating seconds the witch’s body suddenly went limp, her lifeless arms fell to her sides, her legs dangled in the air while her head hung motionless; her hair cascading down her back.

“Oh, my God." Dawn gasped.

“Willow!" Buffy screamed when the redhead’s body started to drift towards its counterpart, still sitting in the middle of the room, unaware of what was happening.

As the two drew closer, the one sitting on the floor began to have the same reactions as the first one. Her breath came in short pants and soon she was clutching at her chest and floating in midair. Hovering closer and closer together, their bodies finally touched. The group watched in awe as the light around them grew in intensity, pulsating, and the two witches began to merge. The conscious Willow let out an inhuman scream as her arm fused with her counterpart’s, one melting into the other. In a slow and excruciatingly painful process their hairs, eyes, mouths and noses melted into one another until there was only one entity left. As the ungodly sight came to an end there was complete silence and all that was left was an unconscious Willow suspended in midair, surrounded by light.

“Willow…" Buffy breathed in a weak voice after a short pause.

Her footsteps over the wreckage echoed in the silent room as she came closer to the redhead. Anya quickly took her place next to Tara’s still unconscious body.

“Willow…" She whispered again, her hand reaching up, but just as their fingers were about to touch Buffy jerked away letting out a cry.

“Buffy!"

In a flash, Spike was standing next to her.

“I-I’m fine. It shocked me. The light." She tried to explain; a confused frown marring her forehead.

“What just happened here?" Dawn asked. “I-Is that Willow?"

Slowly, the woman floating in the air began to come around. Her eyelids blinked a couple of times before her eyes opened to reveal total darkness. She didn’t even bother to glance at the people in the room. Her unseeing gaze focused on a distant point in front of her as she began chanting once again. Her lips moved but no sound was coming out. It was as if someone had just pushed the mute button.

“Willow." Buffy called out again, but received no answer. “Willow, can you hear me? Willow!"

Nothing.

Instinctively, Buffy reached up, but once again was forced to move back when a powerful jolt shocked her.

“It’s not Willow."

Everyone turned to look at Sam who was now partially sitting on the mat.

“Not just yours, anyway." She added.

“What do you mean, not just ours?" Xander questioned. “But she was right there. She can’t have just disappeared. She must be… inside of *her* somehow." He pointed at the chanting woman.

“Oh, she’s in there somewhere. But she’s not the one in charge right now." Sam explained.

“Who is?" Anya questioned, her fingers threading through Tara’s hair as she tried to push the rebellious locks away from the witch’s face.

“The other one." Giles was the one to provide the answer this time. He took off his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose before his gaze met Sam’s. The redhead merely nodded as she got an image from the ex-librarian’s mind. “She’s the one causing the shifting."

“What?" Dawn asked. “How?"

“She’s the one using the magic. That’s why it seemed like there was a barrier when Tara tried to track it down. There wasn’t any mystical barrier. Tara couldn’t pinpoint the origin of the magic because it wasn’t coming from our universe." Giles finished explaining putting his glasses back on. “Kind of arrogant of us…" He paused watching Willow’s hovering form chant. “…to think that out of all the universes possible, the exact one where the disturbance was originated was ours."

Everyone paused for a second. Everything seemed to be coming together. Who would have the power? Who would be strong enough to master such great magic that would cause the universes to bleed together? The answer now seemed clear – Willow.

Buffy was the first to react.

“We have to stop her." Turning to look at Willow’s hovering form she shouted: “Willow!"

There was absolutely no reaction.

“She can’t hear you." Spike realised.

“Why not?"

“She’s in between universes. That’s why we can’t hear her." Giles explained.

“There has to be a way to make her stop and listen." Buffy insisted. “Willow!"

Nothing.

“Willow! Listen to me. You gotta stop whatever you’re doing. Willow!"

“Buffy…" Spike’s voice was a mere whisper cutting through her shouting.

She turned to look at the vampire standing next to her.

“You’re bleeding."

The Slayer’s hand instinctively reached up to touch her nose. When she looked down it was covered by a thick string of blood. Suddenly, she doubled over, as if she had just been punched in the stomach. A muffled cry escaped her parted lips and slowly a bleeding wound started to eat its way through her skin until a large gash was formed on her left cheek.

“Buffy!" Dawn screamed.

“It’s happening to you too." Spike realised as he wrapped one arm around her waist when she stumbled back.

“Willow." She called again.

Spike glanced around at the floor and picked up a rock.

“Better try throwing this." He offered bringing his hand back and throwing the stone with all his strength. There was a collective gasp when the rock hit the light and instantly dissolved into dust.

Suddenly, the ground underneath them began to shake once again. This time the vibrations were twice as strong and soon everyone had tumbled to the ground. The ceiling began to cave in, falling all around Willow, creating a cloud of dust that filled the entire room, temporarily blinding its occupants.

Buffy coughed violently, her hand coming to cover her mouth as she tried hard to breathe. She was blinking wildly, trying to look through the thick cloud when, suddenly, between the shades of blue and black she saw a steel beam coming straight at her. The next thing she was aware of was a flash of black and then she was being rolled on the ground. She ended up trapped under a hard body that pressed against hers, effectively shielding her from falling debris.

The familiar scent of old, worn leather and cigarettes surrounded her. It took a few seconds for her to register the two strong hands cradling the sides of her head and the fact that her face was buried between skin and leather.

“Are you ok?" His voice was raspy and low; his concern evident.

Even though her mind seemed lost in a haze just as thick and as blinding as the one surrounding her, her body reacted automatically and she nodded numbly. That was when he moved. He lifted his head slightly, his hands still framing her face, as he looked down on her. His pupils were wide, leaving only a thin circle of blue in his iris. Even though the floor underneath them continued to shake she seemed unaware of it as she stared up at him.

“You sure?" He insisted as he let his index finger trace the gash on her cheek.

She nodded once again. Without another word he rolled off and crouched next to her. With his aid she stumbled to a standing position as the cloud of dust settled around them to reveal an open sky above them. There was no trace of the ceiling.

After the momentary numbness Buffy’s body reacted and her eyes immediately darted towards the rest of the group. She exhaled in relief when she found all of them huddled in a corner. Well, almost all of them.

“Where’s Sam?" she asked.

Their gaze fell over the spot on the mat where the redhead had been laying until now. Spike felt his stomach turn when he saw a large portion of the ceiling in its place.

“Sam…" He whispered.

Before he had time to mourn or even react a violent vibration that surpassed the intensity of all the ones that had preceded it, shook the entire building and what was left of it started to crumble. Out of nowhere a fracture on the floor started to form. Eating its way through the linoleum and splitting the room in half, it left behind a large fissure that separated Buffy, Spike and Willow from the rest of the group.

“Buffy!" Dawn shouted from the other side.

“Stay there!" Buffy ordered lifting up her hand, still marred with blood as the ground continued to shake underneath them; the crack becoming larger by the second. “Don’t move!"

“Tara!"

Anya’s voice cut through the noise.

“I think she’s coming around." The vengeance demon announced, her wrinkled hand resting on the young woman’s neck. “But her pulse is getting weaker and she’s getting cold." Turning her attention to the woman lying on her lap she whispered: “Tara…"

The witch blinked a couple of times, trying to focus her eyes on the face looking down on her. She gasped and jolted a bit at the sight of Anya’s demonic visage.

“It’s me Anya. Don’t move. You’re wounded. Just stand still and we’ll get you out of here."

Closing her eyes for a second she nodded weakly.

“Buffy, we have to do something." Dawn cried out.

The Slayer was about to reply when Spike’s voice sounded:

“Sam!"

Everyone turned to look in the same direction as the vampire, but there was nothing to see.

“Spike?" Buffy questioned.

He simply stared at a blank spot in midair. His wide eyes announcing that whatever he was seeing was drawing closer.

“Oh, my God!" Giles gasped when suddenly Sam’s body materialized in front of them.

She was hovering just a few inches off the fissure on the ground, her arms were spread out at her sides, her head bowed and her long auburn curls flowing down to completely cover her face. After a few seconds, what sounded like a soft and weak mumbling grew into loud chanting words.

They watched in silence as the light that surrounded Willow stretched through the air to reach Sam, coming closer and closer until the two floating women were immersed in it.

Slowly, Samara’s head lifted up, her curtain of hair parted to allow a glance at the pale complexion of her face. Her black eyes were narrowed, her lips moving fast as she voiced out a mantra of incomprehensible words in an otherworldly language.

“What is she doing?" Dawn asked to no one in particular.

“She’s bringing Willow into our universe." Giles explained; his eyes fixed on the two women.

As the light began to pulsate, Sam’s effort to control it became evident. Her ghostly hands, which hand been firmly spread out began to shake violently and her voice, once sure and strong, was now weak and faltering.

She closed her eyes for a second, swallowing hard before she opened them again and began to chant once more.

Slowly, the glow that had been surrounding Willow started to dim as it abandoned her to engulf Samara completely. As the witch tumbled to the floor, Sam, who was still suspended in midair, stiffened. Her head was thrown back, her facial muscles contorted and her mouth fell open. It was clear that she was screaming in pain, but none of them could hear it. Not anymore. The light drew closer and closer to her. It seemed to penetrate every single pore in her body until it was gone.

There was a fraction of a second in which Samara was simply hovering in the air, suspended like she had been in the beginning when, suddenly, thin, black strings of light began to flow from under her clothes. The strings grew into thick lustrous ropes that twisted around her tightly; turning around her neck, her waist and limbs. Spike swallowed hard as he remembered the same thing happening to her in Buffy’s living room the day before. He watched frozen in place and silent as the black glow spread over her white skin, twining between the red locks of her hair until she was completely immersed in darkness. In the end, in her place all that was left was a large gaping hole of black light. It grew smaller and smaller until it was reduced to a simple dark dot in the air. And then it was gone.

All eyes in the room were now fixed on a blank spot in midair when:

“I should have guessed that little Buffy had something to do with this. So… you came back for more, huh?"

Everyone turned to look in the opposite direction and find a raven-haired Willow stumbling to her feet. Her darkened eyes focused over Spike and Buffy, her back turned to the rest of the group that was standing on the other side of the large precipice.

“Willow." Buffy breathed as she turned to look at her. She suppressed a hiss when the movement sparked a dilacerating pain at her side. ‘ _Great. Apparently my other self also has a couple of broken ribs._ ’ She grumbled inwardly.

Without a thought, Spike was at her side, two strong hands holding her arm.

“And you brought Spike with you. Isn’t that just sweet? The two lovebirds together to fight the big, bad girl."

“Willow?" Buffy questioned again, her head tilting to the side.

There was something completely different about the Willow that was now standing in front of her. Maybe it was the cold and scornful tone in her voice, or simply the frightening lack of whites in her eyes.

The witch mockingly mimicked Buffy’s motions with a head tilt.

“Buffy?"

“Willow, you have to stop this." Buffy spoke.

“Really? And why is that?" She asked but never gave the Slayer a chance to reply. “Oh, no! Wait!" she lifted her hand up. “Let me guess. Because it’s… wrong?" Her eyebrows came together for a second and her lower lip jutted out for a pout. “Guess what?" Her childish expression turned into a cold, unfeeling one as she added: “I don’t care."

“You don’t understand." Buffy insisted, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. “I don’t know what you’re doing but you have to stop it or-"

“Or what? You’re going to get your ass kicked by me…" She paused and a creepy smile spread over her lips. “…again? It’s getting kind of pathetic, don’t you think?"

“You’re causing the entire universes to collapse."

“Now that’s just a bit over-dramatic, don’t you think? It’s just a simple time skipping spell." She continued to mock.

“A time- You’re trying to turn back time? Is that it?" Spike gasped.

“And the prize goes to the Slayer’s fanged lapdog." Willow announced sarcastically.

Spike couldn’t help but growl.

“I thought you had decided to split after the nasty bathroom incident." Willow’s eyes narrowed again and a satisfied smirk spread over her lips when she saw the horrified look on Spike’s face.

“Willow, listen to me. You can’t do that. The spell you’re using is causing-“

“Don’t you think that six years of listening to you is more than enough?" The raven-haired woman asked. “Oh, right… I forget. You’re the Slayer. Which means that you get to tell everyone what to do. Well, guess what… You are NOT going to stop me from getting *her* back." The pain filtered through the rage in her faltering voice. “No one’s EVER going to take her away from me again."

Buffy tried to stand up, her mind commanding her body not to feel the pain that was coursing through her, but as she moved towards her target Willow’s hand lifted and suddenly Buffy was projected across the room. Her body skittered over the ground, opening up a path free of debris in her wake.

“Buffy!" Dawn shouted as Spike ran to kneel next to the Slayer.

The young Summers’ voice caught Willow’s attention.

“Oh, look, the whole gang is here! Isn’t this just heart-warming?" She mocked coldly as she turned to look at the group huddled in a corner. “ Xander… Giles! You’re back! Good to see you." She greeted with fake enthusiasm. Her expression turned into a disgusted one when she turned to look at Dawn. “And of course… hysterical mini-Buffy, as always, is whining her head off."

A coughing sound coming from behind Giles caught the witch’s attention.

Without a word, they watched as the ex-redhead glided over the floor, coming closer to the precipice that separated them from her. Effortlessly, she hovered over the abyss.

“Let’s see who else is here." She said tilting her head, trying to identify the two other forms lying on the floor behind Giles, Dawn and Xander.

“Stay away from-“

One swift move of her finger and Xander found himself voiceless.

“Shush, Xander. I’m done listening to you. I’m in the mood for some fun." She lifted her head up, her nose sniffing the air a few times. “My guess for secret identity number one is…" Her gaze focussed on Xander and a leer took over her lips. “…Anya. You can never go wrong with that vengeance demon aroma."

“That’s enough Willow." Buffy’s angered voice echoed in the crumbling room.

Willow turned slowly to find the Slayer barely standing on the other side of the cliff.

“Ok, this is getting really old. Kicking your ass just isn’t fun anymore. But if you insist."

Willow raised her hand and almost simultaneously Buffy was lifted off the floor. The blonde’s hands immediately went for her neck, struggling with the invisible force that was strangling her.

“Buffy!" Dawn screamed.

“That’s enough shrieking from you, little mouse." Willow commanded.

Instantly, Dawn was silenced even though the witch’s her attention never drifted from Buffy. Her body convulsed, her face turned a frightening shade of blue and her eyes began to roll back in their socks. Her legs jerked and blindly kicked the air as she tried to find release from the witch’s unseeing grip. She was close to loosing consciousness when…

“Willow…" Tara’s weak voice was barely audibly but it was enough to make Willow’s entire body freeze.

Buffy’s tumbled limply to the floor as Willow turned to find her lover lying on Anya’s lap, blood still dripping from her torn shirt.

**Part XX -** **Back Again**

The weak threads of moonlight filtered through the collapsed ceiling to make it look almost black as it spilled onto the linoleum floor. Under the soft glow it was thick and dark, contrasting against the pale white fabric of her shirt. There was so much it … So much of *her* blood. Willow remained frozen in place, staring at the limp form lying in the corner. Her head was propped up on the vengeance demon’s lap; her face looked like it was made out of wax. It was ashen and pasty, gone was the soft light that seemed to constantly irradiate from her pale complexion.

“Tara…" Her voice echoed slightly in the silent, decaying room.

Willow watched as she tried to speak. Her lips parted only to bring on a violent coughing fit. In an instant, the raven-haired witch was kneeling beside her, holding her hand as Tara convulsed. It was so cold. Silently, Anya faded into the background along with the others until it seemed that all that was left in the world were the two of them.

“Tara, honey, you’re back." They managed to hear Willow say between soothing words. “It’s gonna be ok now. I did it. Nothing’s going to hurt you anymore. I promise." One trembling hand abandoned her lover’s to push back a few loose threads of blonde hair that insisted on tumbling down to cover her face. “You’re gonna be alright."

Tara tried to speak again and once more she felt her airways spasm, contracting aggressively until a thick and dark string of liquid was flowing from the corner of her mouth and running down her neck to add to the great stain that marred her shirt.

“No… Don’t try to speak. You don’t have to say anything. I-“ Willow choked back the knot that was growing in her throat, swallowing hard as her raven eyes became glassy with tears. “You’re gonna be ok… I promise." Her voice was weak and broken down. “J-Just stay still…"

Willow lifted her hand, letting it glide an inch over Tara’s wounded chest. Her eyes narrowed as she focussed on the small, circular tear on her shirt. She was snapped out of her deep concentration when Tara’s weak fingers meekly grasped her wrist. Willow’s gaze drifted to find hers.

“Don’t…" Tara managed to whisper.

“But, if I don’t you’ll die…" Willow argued with a faltering voice. “I-I can’t lose you again, baby." She mewled.

The wounded witch closed her eyelids for a second, trying to push back the blackness that was swimming in the corner of her eyes. It took all of her strength to stay conscious. It was so hard and she was getting so cold… So cold.

“You have to stop this…" She gasped before she coughed up some more blood.

Willow tried to speak again but the sight of Tara struggling to say something silenced her.

“You can’t undo… what has happened. You can’t."

The movements of her chest were growing weaker and shallower by the minute.

“I miss you so much. I just want you back, Tara. Please." Willow begged as the tears now flowed freely down the sides of her cheeks.

“I am not…" Her facial muscles contorted at the taste of her own blood crawling up into her mouth. She swallowed it and continued: “…not your Tara."

“Of course you are." Willow tried to deny what she knew to be true deep inside.

Tara shook her head lightly, her eyes closing for a second.

“If you don’t stop… we’ll all die."

“I don’t care. I just want to be with you, please Tara. Let me help you." Willow insisted, moving her hand back over the wound.

Tara’s grip on her wrist grew stronger.

“No."

“Please, baby. Just let me do this for you and I promise everything’s going to be ok. Just let me make it ok." Willow spoke quickly and irrationally, her lower lips jutting out painfully as she tried to control the onslaught of sobs.

Her heartbeat skipped a beat when she saw Tara’s eyelids fall closed and felt her frozen fingers slip from her wrist.

“Tara! Tara, baby. Talk to me! Tara! Don’t- Oh, God please don’t. Tara!" Willow cried out in agony and despair.

“Willow…" Giles’ voice filtered through her pain. “You have to stop this. You have to stop your spell from happening. If you don’t, we’ll die."

Willow turned to look at him over her shoulder as he added: “She’ll die."

The witch narrowed her eyes at him as the hurt seemed to be suffocating her.

“She’s not your Tara… and you know it. Your Tara is gone. You can’t bring her back or change your past." Giles explained.

He seemed to be getting to her when suddenly her expression hardened once more. She ignored the ex-watcher and turned her attentions back to the partially conscious Tara. She focussed her gaze on the wound, raising her hand over it. They waited, but nothing happened.

“There is no bullet, Willow." Giles explained.

The witch’s eyes grew wide.

“In your world Tara is already dead. She’s probably in a morgue or even… buried, isn’t she?" He asked.

She nodded meekly.

“They’ve already taken the bullet out. She’s already dead… and this Tara is merging with her. She’s going to die if you don’t stop this." The shopkeeper explained in a low voice.

Her eyelids fell closed for a while, her eyebrows coming together for a painful frown. When she opened her eyes her gaze met Tara’s.

“I miss you so much…" Willow mumbled.

Slowly, the blackness of her hair seemed to start to fade away, gradually being replaced by the old reddish tone it usually had. The raven eyes grew paler until all that was left in her iris was the familiar green.

“I…" Tara coughed again and Willow’s hand was there to soothe her, her thumb drawing small circles on a cold and ashen cheek. “I love you." Tara managed to gasp.

A fresh stream of tears coursed down the side of Willow’s face. She leaned down, her eyes closed as her lips brushed ever so lightly against Tara’s.

“I love you too, baby." She whispered, letting her forehead rest on her lover’s.

The rest of the group stayed back, watching as the two said their last goodbyes.

With her hand still cupping Tara’s cheek, her eyes still closed, she began muttering:

‘ _Thoth, Djehuti, Tehuty,_

_Lord of the Khemenu,_

_God of the moon and magic,_

_I summon thee to my will.’_

A soft breeze started to blow in the crumbling building, sending a chill down Buffy’s spine. She lay still on the floor, her entire body sore and aching as Spike knelt next to her, his fingers discreetly drawing secret patterns over the back of her hand. The two of them watched from afar as a faint light appeared around the chanting witch.

 

_‘Let yesterday be gone and_

_Tomorrow still to come._

_May Shai reclaim his meaning,_

_And  his realm be restored.’_

As the words were spoken the glow grew stronger, until Willow was completely engulfed in it; her features barely visible under the intense blaze.

‘ _Thoth, Djehuti, Tehuty,_

_Lord of the Khemenu,_

_Ruler of Time,_

_Let yesterday be gone…’_

Willow paused, giving Tara one last kiss before she uttered the rest of the spell:

‘ _And tomorrow still to come.’_

With that a blinding flash inundated the entire room, like a silent shockwave spreading instantly around them.

Buffy blinked wildly; everything was white. Her heart raced in her chest as the sudden fear of being sightless hit her. The feel of a strong hand gripping hers gave her a comforting sense of calm.

“Buffy…"

The sound of his voice soothed her.

Slowly, but surely, her eyes started to react to the stimulus around her. The frightening whiteness started to turn bluer and darker; soon shadows and outlining began to filter in and eventually she was able to see again.

She blinked a couple more times until her eyes focussed on a spot in the distance. Instinctively, her gaze wandered over to the man kneeling at her side, holding her hand.

“You ok?" She heard his ask.

She stared into his eyes and nodded. When he ran his hand along the side of her face she couldn’t help but close her eyes for a second, but a rustling sound snapped her out of it.

“Dawn?" She called out.

“I’m ok, Buffy. I’m over here."

Buffy hissed when she tried to move. Her body still ached. Her hand instantly went to nurse the side of her ribcage. Her eyes widened and she gasped when she felt the bones move into place under her skin.

Anya was having a similar reaction. Her fingers hovered over the marred tissue of her face. The deep gashes grew shallow until they were completely gone and the purplish tone of her skin had vanished and her usual pale complexion was restored.

Giles adjusted his glasses as his sight returned. He scanned his surrounding and was relieved to find that everyone was still there. His attentions drifted to the spot were Willow and Tara had been. There he found the two of them lying in similar positions.

The redhead witch lay unconscious with her head resting on Tara’s shoulder. Gone was the black outfit he had just seen her in to be replaced by old blue denims and a simple white shirt. It was Willow; their Willow.

He watched as Tara stirred into consciousness. Her face twisted painfully when she became aware of her surroundings. She gasped a bit as she felt the healing changes take over her body. Suddenly, breathing wasn’t such an unbearable task, her sight wasn’t murky and soon the pain that made her mind tremble between wakefulness and total blackness was gone.

A soft smile spread over her lips when she saw the woman leaning on her shoulder. Slowly, she wrapped her arm around her and began whispering:

“Willow, honey… Wake up."

Gradually, the redhead started to stir. She nuzzled her face on the smooth fabric when suddenly the scent of blood assaulted her nose.

“Tara!" She gasped, jumping up. “Tara, sweetie! Are you ok? Oh, my goddess we have to take you to a hospital." Her irrational rambling was cut short by Tara’s smile.

She shook her head:

“We don’t have to. I’m ok." She grasped her lover’s hand and brought it over her previously wounded chest. “See."

“How? What happened?" Willow asked confused.

“It’s over, Willow." Giles announced. “The shifting… it’s over."

Willow turned in the direction his voice was coming from; her mouth falling open when she took in the destruction around her. The entire building had collapsed, leaving only two walls partially standing.

A few feet away from her and Tara were Giles and Dawn. A bit further Anya and Xander stood with their arms wrapped around each other and, in the distance, separated from the rest of the group by a deep crack in the floor, were Buffy and Spike.

Willow frowned a bit as she breathed:

“Where’s Sam?"

The distraught look on everyone’s faces told her the news weren’t good. They eyed each other in silence. Buffy dared to cast a glimpse in Spike’s direction. She watched him swallow hard and stand up straight.

“She’s gone." Spike’s voice cut through the stillness.

Part XXI – The Morning After

As the boot came into contact with it, the small rock flew through the air for a few seconds before it dropped back onto the floor, rolling a few feet causing a cloud of dust to trail behind it.

“Man, this place is completely trashed." Xander noted the obvious as he stared at the rock.

The morning after the big confrontation they gather once again in the wreckage that used to be the Magic Shop. Under the clear light of day the destruction of the building was more evident.

“Why couldn’t the big showdown have happened in the other reality?" Anya pouted for the umpteenth time that morning. She sat on a pile of rubble, her elbows on her knees, her hands under her chin. “A universe in which *I* don’t run the Magic Box."

“Have I said how *really* sorry I am?" Willow piped up with guilt in her voice as she eyed Giles under an apologetic frown.

The shopkeeper let his hand rest on her shoulder.

“It wasn’t your fault, Willow. You weren’t even there." He said calmly.

“Yeah, it was her nasty, psychotic, evil twin." Anya grumbled shooting Willow a murderous look.

“I’m sorry." The witch muttered as Tara’s reassuring arm came to wrap around her waist.

“It’s ok, baby. It wasn’t you." The blonde whispered.

The group wandered through the wreckage, surveying the destruction.

“There is no way we are going to be able to fix this up." Xander spoke his thoughts out loud.

“Don’t say that!" Anya scolded him, standing up in a flash to cross the room and stand in front of her fiancé. “We are going to get this all fixed up and at minimum cost. You hear me?"

“Of course we are, honey." He reassured her.

“Things could have been a lot worse." Giles said as his mind dwelled on the memories of the night before. “The way she was upset… if it hadn’t been for Tara… We wouldn’t have made it."

“Go, Tara! New super hero in town." Xander applauded.

The blonde Wicca felt the blood rush to her cheeks, giving them a bright shade of red as her eyes stared at the floor.

“What really did happen in the other universe?" Dawn spoke up.

“We’ll probably never know." Giles took off his spectacles, running his handkerchief over the lenses before putting them back on. “All we know is that, for some reason, Tara…" He paused glancing at her. “…died and Willow wanted to turn back time to stop that from happening."

At the ex-watcher’s words, the redhead wrapped her arms around her lover and brought her as close to her as she could before she whispered:

“Thank God, you’re ok. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you."

“It’s ok, I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere."

“Why did the fight have to happen here?" Anya whinged again, ignoring the rest of the gang.

“Anya, will you drop it already. It happened. Get over it." Dawn stepped in, tired of hearing the ex-demon complain. “Now, let’s get to work."

“And since when are you all action-girl?" Anya grumbled.

Dawn hesitated a bit before she answered with a question directed at none in particular:

“Am I really a whiny brat?"

“What? No!" Willow and Xander said in unison.

“You’re not a brat, nor are you whiny." Giles guaranteed.

“Of course you’re not." Tara added.

“Sometimes."

Everyone turned to look at Anya.

“Well, it’s true. I’m sorry. But she is whiny." The ex-demon insisted even under the scrutiny of the others.

“Ahn!" Xander protested.

“What? I’m honest." She blurted out.

Shaking his head, Giles couldn’t help but smile, everything seemed to be back to normal again. His eyes scanned his surroundings. Well, at least they would be after they started work on the walls… and the floor… and the… _Oh my God, there’s no ceiling!_ He realised what had been painstakingly obvious to everyone else.

Rolling his eyes and sighing, he grumbled:

“We better get to work."

“Right." Xander exclaimed bringing his hands together for a loud clap. “To work."

There was a moment of silence as the gang exchanged looks.

“Where do we start?" Dawn asked frustrated.

“How about we clean everything out of the room first? See what we can use and what we can’t." Willow offered.

“Good idea." Xander said excitedly as he moved toward one of the large steel beams fallen in the middle of the room.

He bent down and tried to pick it up but it wouldn’t budge.

“Um… A little help, please." He piped up.

Giles went up to him. The two men pulled and pushed together but once more it had no effect.

“Ok, we need Slayer strength here. Where’s Buffy? What’s taking her so long?" Xander asked.

“She went to check on Spike." Dawn explained. “See how he’s doing." She paused. “See if he has any news on Sam."

“Oh…"

A heavy silence filled the air as the group remembered the strange redhead’s disappearance.

~+~

The metallic screeching of hinges being turned alerted him to his unannounced guest. Even so he remained lying on his back on the bed, his head propped up by his two hands clasped together behind his neck; his eyes closed. Heeled-footsteps were heard, first on the top floor and then closer, over the steps that led to the underground compartment of his crypt where he lay. He didn’t need to open his eyes to know it was her. Her scent had betrayed her the moment she had opened the front door.

“Hey." Her voice was soft and low.

“Hey." He repeated the greeting as he opened his eyes and looked at her.

She stood at the foot of the bed, her hands nervously running over one another.

“How are you?" She questioned, trying to make small talk.

“I’m ok." He replied sitting up straight and flinging his legs over the edge of the mattress.

There was a moment of silence between them as they held each other’s gaze. It ended when she lowered her eyes to the floor and breathed:

“Any news?" She didn’t have to say anything else. He knew what she was referring to, even so he asked:

“On Samara?"

She nodded weakly.

“No." He ran his left hand through his dishevelled hair.

He hadn’t had a chance to bathe yet. After last night he had found his way back to his crypt and crashed onto his bed. He had tried to sleep. Probably managed a half an hour or so before he had woken up once again.

Nervously, Buffy moved closer, taking a seat next to him on the bed.

“She’ll be ok." She tried to reassure him, but the hesitation and doubt were clear in her voice.

She heard him force out a chuckle and she swallowed hard when he turned to look at her. She had expected to find tears or maybe just sadness, but there was no trace of either in his azure iris.

“I know she is." The strength in his tone made her wonder if he knew something that he wasn’t telling her.

“How?" She asked, tilting her head.

He shrugged.

“Just do."

Once more, they looked at each other for a long while. She realised that the mask he had been so effectively holding up was starting to crack when she saw a shimmer in his eyes. It was faint but it was there.

“Spike…" She breathed.

Suddenly, he was up and walking to reach the nightstand on the other side of the bed.

“So, how’s the watcher’s shop doing? Still broken in half?" He asked refusing to look at her while he shuffled through the contents of the drawer.

She dwelled on whether to confront him or just play along with his charade. She chose the latter.

“Yeah. Apparently, the earthshaking and floor-cracking was in our universe."

“Too bad. Demon girl must be crawling up the walls, huh?" He continued his search.

“Yeah…" She replied, standing up and going around the bed to reach him. “Spike…"

There was no answer.

“Spike…" she called again, this time setting her hand on his t-shirt-clad shoulder.

He stopped. She watched as he inhaled deeply before turning around to face her.

“Yeah?"

“What are you looking for?"

“Something…" He paused and added: “Not important." He shrugged once more and tried to walk away but she stood in his path. “Wha’?" His voice was hard as he looked at her with a cold stare.

“It’s ok if you’re scared and-“

“Not scared." He replied gruffly.

She tilted her head and looked up at him.

“Why are you acting like this?" She asked calmly.

“Like what?" He grumbled, trying to pass once more, but again she was in his way.

“Since when do you bottle feelings up inside?" She questioned.

“I’m not bottling anything, Slayer." He replied, managing to get past her.

“See?" She said triumphantly. “Every time you’re pissed you call me Slayer."

“What are you blabbing on about, Sla-" He stopped himself, but it was enough for her to pick up on it.

Her eyebrows raised on her forehead as if saying ‘I rest my case’.

He shook his head.

“Look, I don’t have time for this now. I don’t feel like having another round of-“

“Stop it." She interrupted him. “I know how important she was to you-"

“You don’t know anything." He growled.

“Fine! You wanna fight. We’ll fight. If it makes you feel any better." She said, bringing her wrists up in front of her.

“Don’t wanna fight you." He replied walking past her, but her strong grip on his bicep stopped him.

“Just let it go." She muttered when he turned around to face her.

“Oh, brilliant!" He exclaimed sarcastically as he pulled away from her. “This coming from the Queen of Denial!"

“Fine, so I have issues with expressing-“

“You bet you’ve got issues." He chuckled angrily.

“Don’t try to turn this on me."

“I didn’t. You’re the one who always manages to make everything about herself." He narrowed his eyes at her. “Oh, I’m the Slayer! I’m so bloody important. Oh, I died and now everyone has to wait on me hand and foot. I’m so sad." He felt his stomach turn the moment the words left his mouth, but he stood his ground.

He watched as her eyes turned glassy and bloodshot almost instantly. She swallowed hard as she walked past him. She didn’t make it to the foot of the stairs before he was running after her and standing in her path.

“I’m sorry." He breathed apologetically. “I didn’t mean to… You know me and my big mouth, always blabbing away the stupidest thing I can think of… I’m sorry."

Her eyes were glued to his t-shirt as she refused to look up at him for a few moments. Eventually, her gaze drifted to meet him.

“I know you’re hurting, but that’s no excuse to go around being…"

“Mean?" He offered.

“Well, I was gonna go for ‘yourself’, but mean will do." She replied with a weak smile.

He exhaled the breath he had been holding inside for the last minute and smiled back at her.

A warm feeling of peace seeped into his chest when her fingers came to rest on t-shit.

“I’m sorry about Sam." She practically whispered.

Her hand drifted from his chest up to his cheek and he closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. His body seemed to freeze for a moment when he felt her lips graze over his, but soon he relaxed and returned the soft kiss.

His own hands found their way to cup her cheeks as the contact grew stronger and deeper. After a few seconds, he felt her pull away, his eyes opening, his lips trailing after hers to prolong the kiss, but she managed to keep them at bay as she leaned against his forehead.

“I love you." She breathed.

His eyes instinctively fell closed again as he exhaled sharply.

“Buffy, you-“

He was cut short when her lips were suddenly on his, silencing his. Her mouth opened over his, her tongue sneaking in to duel with his as her hands wrapped around his neck tightly.

Breathless, she eventually pulled away.

“Now you listen to me. I didn’t say it before because of the little slime demon and I’m not saying it now because of Sam. I’m saying it because I mean it." She paused, watching his eyes widened in awe. “I love you."

He simply stood there, with her arms wrapped around him, his eyes large; his mouth partially open.

“Spike, did you-“

“Say it again." He managed to say. His voice was weak and faltering.

She smiled.

“I love you."

He swallowed hard.

“Again."

“I. Love. You." She repeated slowly, giggling a bit. “Are you alright? You didn’t-“

She wasn’t able to finish her sentence as suddenly she was swept off her feet. Next thing she knew she was falling onto a soft mattress with a loud whiffing sound as Spike followed her.

His body hovered over hers when he smashed his lips against hers for a ravenous kiss; his tongue invading her mouth while his hands delved into her thick locks.

She inhaled sharply when he finally abandoned her lips, giving her a chance to breathe while he trailed hard, open-mouth kisses down the column of her neck. Her mouth fell open, her head limply dropped back as her hair cascaded down the side of the bed.

The buttons of her shirt came easily undone under the pressure of his chin as he made his way over her breasts. Pushing the cup of her bra aside, his lips found one hard nipple to worry, while its counterpart was being rolled between two fingers.

Her nails dug paths through his bleached hair, pushing his face against her chest, trying desperately to increase the contact. A frustrated mewl escaped her when she felt his mouth abandon her breast to trail down to her stomach. With cloudy eyes, she forced her head up to look down at him. A content smile lit up her face when his fingers began working on the buttons of her jeans. The moment they were undone, he pushed the denim down, off her hips, letting it gather up around her ankles. It took a few excruciating moments to get her boots off, but eventually they tumbled to the floor along with her socks and jeans. Quickly, his attentions were back on track as his lips grazed over the soft material of her underwear. His mouth opened over the cotton panties, kissing the small mound they covered until the fabric was thoroughly soaked through. His tongue dropped between her legs to find the apex of her thighs.

“Ah…" She groaned as he kissed and nipped at her sex over the thin layer of clothing; her head falling over the side of the bed once more and her hips instinctively bucking off the mattress to thrust against his mouth. “Spike… please." She begged.

One curious finger found the edge of her panties, lightly pushing it aside to allow his tongue to trace the contours of her outer lips.

He was planning on making her suffer a bit more, but his plan fell through when he opened his eyes to look at her. The sight of her spread out for him, her head thrown back, her mouth open, her chest raising and falling erratically, causing her breasts to sway under the confinement of her bra was just too much. Urgently, his lips encircled her clit, eagerly suckling it into his mouth as his index finger pushed into wet channel.

Buffy’s eyes shot open when the unexpected orgasm hit her hard. Her grip on his hair became almost painful, feeling the energy course through her body. The intensity seemed to double when he added a second finger and pumped into her in earnest. She thrashed under his ministrations for a few seconds before a wave of calm and fulfilment washed over her.

She let out a soft sigh of contentment when he crawled over her to cover her naked body with his clothed one.

Slowly, her hands began to move over him, finding to edge of his t-shirt and pulling it over his head. Another sigh escaped her at the feel of his skin against hers… so cold. Next, her attentions dwelled on the fly of his jeans. Her fingers slid over the curve of his ass as she pushed the black fabric down his thighs. Thankfully, he wasn’t wearing his combat boots, so all she had to do was sneak one foot between his legs and push the denims all the way down to his feet until they dropped to the floor to meet her discarded jeans.

As she worked on his clothes, he helped her dispose of her own. With ease, he undid the front clasp of her bra, revealing her breasts to him. His fingers slipped under her shirt and guided it over her shoulder and down her arms. She arched off the bed to simplify his task, her nipples brushing against his cold skin in the process.

When they were finally devoid of any clothing, she scooted over the mattress so she could rest her head on it while her legs instinctively parted to let his hips nestle between hers. He watched her close her eyes for a second and let out a soft mewl as his erection brushed against her soaked lips.

His mouth dropped to cover hers in a slow, deep kiss. When they parted, their gazes met. His hands were framing her face, his body hovering over hers, when he moved his hips forward and entered her.

Theirs eyes widened at the feel of his cock pushing her swollen folds apart to slide into her drenched channel. Buffy’s lips pressed together, holding her breath as he pushed all the way in, stretching her. When he was finally sheathed in her she exhaled sharply, swallowing hard and looking up at him with large, glassy eyes; her cheeks flushed.

He stared down at her, watching as her eyelids fell shut, her nails dug into his shoulders just as he began to stir inside of her. He moved in long and deep strokes, pulling almost all the way out before gliding back in, building a leisurely, steady rhythm.

They kept the fluid motions for what seemed like an eternity, the pleasure inside growing slowly. Her breath was coming in shallow and laboured pants, but even so her hands gripped the back of his neck and pulled him down for hungry kiss. Her eyebrows crunched up in pleasure as she pushed her lips against his, moaning into his mouth while her hips rose off the bed to meet his thrusts.

With a gasp she tore away from him, letting her head drop to the mattress and looked up at him wide-eyed.

“I love you." She breathed just before her internal muscles began fluttering around his cock and she started to come.

“Christ, Buffy… I love you so much." He managed to pant; his mouth falling open and his eyes closed, just as his own orgasm hit him.

His body stiffened instantly while his hips bucked, erratically thrusting into her clenching core as he came.

When he finally came down from his high his head dropped down and his face nuzzled against the crook of her neck. He let out a satisfied sigh while her hands came to wrap around him to pull him into her warm embrace. She smile and closed her eyes, letting the sweet numbness take over her.

Part XXII – Work’s up

As his mind slowly drifted towards consciousness he became more and more aware of a small body wrapped around his. He opened his eyes to find her laying next to him, snuggled close to his chest, his left arm surrounding her as her hand and thigh were splayed over his lower abdomen.

He blinked a couple of times until the image came into focus. Her fingers twitched a bit as she too started to awake. She nestled her face against his throat, fighting off awareness, but it was inevitable. Slowly, but surely, she started to stir, her nose trailed down his neck, across his collarbone to reach his shoulder. She opened her eyes and met his. Almost immediately a smile spread over her lips.

“Morning." She murmured, her voice hoarse from sleep.

“Actually, it’s closer to evening." He replied with a smirk, while his left hand delved into her locks.

She closed her eyes for a second and leaned into his touch.

“Nice to find you’re still here." He couldn’t help noting. “Usually, right about now you’re halfway across town-“

“Virtue fluttering. I know… I’m sorry." She whispered, rolling over so she was now lying on top of him. “I’ve been a real bitch, haven’t I?"

“Well…" He looked sideways as if trying to remember a particular moment in time and then suddenly looked at her and said matter-of-factly: “Yeah."

“I’m sorry." She mewled again, coming down to capture his lips with hers.

It was supposed to have been a short, innocent kiss but, as Spike rested his hand on the back of her neck, pulling her closer and opening his mouth, it grew deeper. Their tongues came into play and soon he had her gasping for air. After a few seconds, when her breathing became a bit too erratic, he let her up.

“You’re forgiven." He breathed, watching her flushed face while she drew deep, hard breaths into her lungs.

She smiled down at him and let her mouth drop to his chest. She planted a series of small kisses on the soft skin before she rolled off of him to lie once more at his side.

“What time is it?" She asked.

“About seven or eight." He replied.

“Oh, my God!" She gasped sitting up, her eyes darting around to find her clothes.

“Let me guess. You’re late." He groaned disappointed.

She stopped and turned to see the hurt on his face. She smiled and crawled up next to him.

“Actually, *we* are late."

The vampire frowned.

“We have to help Giles back at the Magic Box."

He cocked up a scarred eyebrow.

“We?"

“Yes, we. If we’re going to be an official couple you’re going to have to help out my friends." She explained matter-of-factly.

At that, the smug look on Spike’s face faded to be replaced by a serious and anxious one.

“A couple? An official couple?"

“Yeah? What’d you expect?" She continued to talk as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You’re going to tell your chums about us?" His finger alternated between pointing at her and at himself.

“Yeah." She repeated.

His eyes narrowed at that.

“What’s the catch?" He questioned, not totally convinced.

“No catch." She insisted.

Her chin rested on his chest, while her fingers traced circles over the pale skin that covered his sternum.

“So when is the big revelation going to occur?"

“Well… I wasn’t planning on doing it right away-“

“There’s the catch." He muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Will you listen to me? I can’t just drop the bomb on Giles like that. He just had his shop completely destroyed. I don’t want to have him worrying about… us."

“Why would he worry about us? Ever thought he would actually think it’s natural?"  He questioned.

“Natural? You?" Her finger pointed at him, before turning to herself. “And me? Together?" It turned to indicate the bed they lay on. “Doing the nasty?" She scrunched up her nose. “He’s pretty much gonna have a major coronary. Believe me. I know Giles."

“Fine." He grumbled.

“Oh, come on. Don’t be that way." She begged, pouting a bit. “I promise I’ll tell him as soon as the Magic Box is fixed up."

Once more he narrowed his eyes at her untrustingly.

“I promise!" She insisted.

There was a moment of pause and she could tell he was still unconvinced.

“Look, I don’t go around telling everyone I love them. Sleeping around and having wild, animal sex with vampires, yes. Saying I love you, no."

“Good to know." He couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I mean it, Spike. I wanna be with you." She paused, lying down beside him.

She rolled onto her side, turning her back to him as her arm pulled his so he was spooning up against her back.

“And I want all my friends to know. When they’re ready."

She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply when she felt him nuzzle his face into her hair for a second before his lips found her earlobe.

“We really should go." She said a bit breathless.

“Huh?" His mind had hazed up the moment she had turned on her side; her marvellous backside rubbing against his crotch.

He breathed in her scent while his teeth nibbled on her skin.

“We have to help out…" She trailed off when his tongue delved into the labyrinth of her ear. “That’s good…" She moaned.

“Mmm…" He hummed, trusting his hips against her ass, his hard cock slipping between her thighs.

“That’s even better…" She gasped, grinding her backside against him. “Spooning is good…" She managed to say as his erection pushed between the soaked lips of her sex.

She held her breath while he positioned the head of his cock at her opening. She waited for him to make a move but he didn’t. His right hand came around to gruffly cup her breast, rolling her pebbled nipple between his index finger and his thumb. When he refused to move his hips, Buffy was forced to push back and with one swift, fluid motion he was sheathed inside of her.

The two gasped in unison as they started to rock together.

~+~

A smile spread over her lips as she watched the two cuddling shapes.

“Finally…" She murmured.

“Checking on the nether ones again, are we?"

She jumped up slightly, surprised by the male voice coming from behind her. She turned to look at the tall blond that came to stand next to her.

“Jesus, Adrian! Lurk much?" She sighed **,** her attention drifting back to the couple under the sheets.

“The Slayer and the vamp are back together?" He asked raising a perfectly shaped eyebrow.

Her smile grew as she nodded.

“Never thought of you as a voyeur." Adrian noted watching the couple.

“What?" She frowned, looking closely at the two. Her face immediately scrunched up in disgust as their movements became more obvious. “They’re going at it AGAIN? God, they’re like bunnies." She grumbled and with one swift move of her hand the image before them disappeared into a flood of white light. “And why did they have to do it in MY bed?" She added, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting.

“It’s not your bed anymore, Samara." Adrian pointed out with a grin.

She menacingly narrowed her eyes at him.

“It *is* my bed. *I* bought it." She mumbled.

“Well, it’s not really your bed if you can’t go anywhere near it anymore. Remember your little agreement with the Boss."

She shook her head before exhaling sharply. The two began to walk down the white-lit path.

“Not fair."

“Well, you’re the one who decided to piss her off." Adrian continued to speak as the two strolled together. “You know good and well we can’t interfere with the lives of the nether ones."

“Yeah, but if I hadn’t interfered we’d be pretty screwed right about now!" Sam exclaimed pointing her index finger at him triumphantly.

“Yes, and that’s the only reason you’re not stuck in some forsaken, puny, little in-between plane right now." Adrian agreed.

“I still don’t know why I can’t go back there. Just one more time." She argued. “I mean, they’re all going to think I’m dead or something. They’re gonna mourn me and-“

“They didn’t look too grief-stricken to me." Adrian threw her a smug grin.

“You can just wipe that smirk off your face." She warned him. “I’m telling you, I’m going to find a way to get back there." She said confidently.

“You’re going to get yourself into some big trouble with the Boss."

“Well, *she* can just bite my pretty little-“

Samara was cut short as a powerful shockwave passed through them. Bringing her eyebrows together for an apologetic frown, she said:

“Sorry." Then she leaned into Adrian and whispered: “I *am* going to find a way."

“I bet you will." He chuckled as a bright light engulfed them.

~+~

“It’s about time the two of you showed up." Anya grumbled when the vampire and the slayer walked into the ruins of the Magic Box.

Night had fallen and what was left of the room was bathed in shades of blue and black. The group was gathered in the destroyed room. Tara and Willow were picking up a large rock off the floor while Giles wiped his brow with a handkerchief.

“We kinda got sidetracked." Buffy explained as she watched the Xander and Dawn haul the last debris out of the room. The only things left were two large steel bars. “What can we do?" She asked bringing her hands together.

“You can start by carrying those out of here." Anya practically ordered pointing at the fallen steal.

“Right on it." Spike piped up with a huge smile.

“And why are you so chipper?" Xander frowned as he returned to the room.

“Just happy to help." Spike replied, bending down to pick up the large steal beam with Buffy.

“Since when?" Xander questioned.

He Spike ignored him and lifted the metal with Buffy’s aid. The two made it look almost effortless.

“I wish I had super strength." Dawn complained, dropping down to the floor in exhaustion, watching as her sister and the vampire carried their cargo out and loaded it onto a pickup truck outside.

They were back and working on the second beam. Soon the room was cleaned out.

“What now?" Spike asked a bit too anxious to aid.

“Ok, helpful-upbeat Spike is freaking me out."

The blond rolled his eyes at Xander.

“Xander!" Anya stepped in, yanking at her fiancé’s sleeve and hissed: “No pissing off the free manual labour. Especially the only *super strength*, free, manual labour that works all the way through the night."

Xander sighed.

“Fine." Turning to face the rest of the group he added: “We have to go over to the construction site and see if we can smuggle some of the heavy machinery out. We’re gonna need it to fix that." He pointed at the large crack on the floor.

~+~

The days went by and slowly the building started to look like it had before the big confrontation. The gang worked day in and day out and, eventually, the fracture on the floor was fixed, the walls and the ceiling had been rebuilt.

“Anya, pass me the hammer, please!" Xander shouted from his spot between the wooden beams that held part of the roof.

The ex-demon took the tool and put it in the bucket. Pulling at the rope, it was lifted in the air by the rudimentary pulley system they had devised.

“I still don’t think letting Xander repair the ceiling on his own was a good idea." Giles expressed his concern for the 1000th time in the space of three weeks.

“It looks pretty solid to me." Dawn pointed out as she looked up at her friend, hammering a few nails into place.

“For now…" Giles sighed, taking off his glasses and cleaning them.

“Relax, Giles. Everything’s going to work out." Willow tried to reassure the shopkeeper, even though she had her own worries about the stability of the entire structure.

They had all frowned and doubted that the young man could pull off the plans by himself, but he had surprised them all with his knowledge of engineering.

The redhead returned to her place next to Tara, helping her work on the linoleum floor.

Giles shook his head and also returned to the task with the two Wiccas.

“Where have Spike and Buffy gone off to? Again?" Anya protested as she carried in the tin cans.

“They went outback to get the rest of the linoleum sheets for the floor." Dawn explained. “Anya, is that really the colour you want on the walls?" She questioned when she saw the content of the cans they had bought.

They had spent over three hours in the hardware store debating over the colours to use on the walls. Anya’s first choice? Bright green. Giles had practically choked to death at the sight of it. After a long argument they had settled on lavender. It was still hideous, but not as stomach-turning and nauseating as the panoply of colours that had preceded their final choice.

 “Yes!" Anya replied, ignoring the disgusted look on Dawn’s face as she dipped the brush into the tin can. “Now, where’s my free super-strength manual labour?" She whined.

~+~

“Spike, we have to go- Oh, God!" She gasped as he pushed her against the wall and lifted her off the ground.

Almost instantly, he pushed the puny material of her thong aside and was buried inside of her.

“You’re insatiable." She managed to moan as he pumped in and out of her.

One arm was wrapped around her, holding her in place, while the other wormed its way between their bodies to rub her clit.

“It’s what you do to me, pet." He muttered in her ear, nibbling on it.

They had just ended round number two of the day, she had finished putting on her thong and was flattening her skirt down. She was saying something about having to go somewhere, but the sight of her bending over to pick up the large sheets of linoleum, her perfectly shaped ass swaying in the air made the borrowed blood in his body rush South. Without thinking, he spun her around and had her pinned against the wall.

Now, he moved languidly in and out of her. He couldn’t get enough of her. Her sight, her voice, her scent, her breath coming in hard pants on his neck… all of it was intoxicating. Addictive.

“We’re constantly disappearing… Spike…" She tried to speak, but the feel of him thrusting into her made it almost impossible to speak coherently. “We have to stop sneaking out to… Ah! There! Right there!" She swallowed hard, trying to concentrate. “T-the guys are going to get suspicious… Oh, God! Don’t stop!"

“Christ, pet." He gasped against her neck as her walls clamped down around him as she neared her release.

“They’re already…" A moan interrupted her phrase. “…wondering about… Faster! That’s it… right there… about my… Faster… newly-found love of skirts. Oh, GOD!" She exhaled sharply one last time, grinding her teeth together as she came.

Her nails dug into the black leather covering his back, her legs tightened around his waist while her muscles fluttered around his cock bringing him to the brink and precipitating his orgasm.

They clung together in a breathless heap of limp muscles and sweaty skin as they came down.

“We have to go…" She whispered letting one leg drop to the floor and then the other.

Her arms were still wrapped around his neck as he nuzzled against her throat.

~+~

The two walked into the room carrying the linoleum sheets. Buffy trailed behind the vampire, trying to hide her flushed face.

“Finally! We were thinking some big nasty had gotten to you." Dawn sighed as she rolled the paint onto the walls.

“That colour is hideous." The vampire supplied, setting the sheets next to Tara and Willow.

“That’s what I’ve been telling her." Giles sighed, shaking his head. What were they doing to his shop?

“I think I could get used to it." Xander said, trying to be supportive to his soon-to-be-wife while he picked up one of the linoleum boards and set it into its place.

“I can’t believe it’s almost done." Anya said giddily. “You know what that means?"

Xander smiled affectionately:

“Are you still sure you want to have the wedding here?"

She nodded emphatically.

“And you don’t want to invite anyone besides the gang?"

“Yes!" She stopped painting the wall and turned to look at her fiancé. “No one, but us." She pointed at the gang with the dripping brush.

“What made you change your mind?" Dawn wondered. “I mean, you wanted this huge wedding, with all the gift-baring guests…"

“I just got this sinking feeling during that night..." She trailed off, but everyone knew she was referring to the night of the confrontation. “… not to invite anyone else."

“My parents were kinda-“

“Especially not family!" She cut Xander off.

The brunette simply shrugged.

“Well, they weren’t too pissed." He stopped for a second, contemplating the issue. “Actually, they were a bit relieved to be getting out of the expensive gift-giving event." Xander explained.

“I just want a simple, short ceremony in my-“

Giles cleared his throat at that.

“-in our newly restored Magic Box." She smiled as she finished her sentence and leaned in to kiss her future husband.

Dawn simply rolled her eyes and continued to paint with a smiling Anya at her side.

“Goddess, I’m tired." Tara breathed sitting back and brushing the sweat away from her forehead with the back of her hand.

“And hungry." Willow added.

“Whose turn is it to go on food duty?" Dawn questioned.

“We’ll go!" Buffy and Spike offered immediately, not giving anyone a chance to protest as they were out the door.

“Great super-strength help they turned out to be." Anya grumbled.

“They didn’t even ask what we wanted." Xander pouted.

“It’s always pizza anyway." Willow shrugged.

“Could they be any more obvious?" Dawn sighed.

“Some people find it stimulating… The hiding." Anya supplied.

“Obvious about what?" Xander asked with a frown.

“Nothing, honey." The ex-demon said patting her fiancé’s back. “In your case, it’s more a matter of being oblivious."

“Huh?"

The two witches, in the distance, giggled at Xander’s confusion while Giles simply shook his head and cleaned his glasses.

Epilogue

The new training room was barely recognisable covered in the decorations for the wedding. Long, white threads of fabric were intertwined into the wooden beams of the ceiling. They tumbled down at the sides, like thin individual curtains, to form a long corridor at the centre of the room. The passage, which lead to a small altar-like structure, was lined with white and yellow petals and a series of small orange candles were placed at the end of each individual curtain, distant enough from the fabric so it would catch on fire. Finally, six chairs were lined in front of the altar, three on each side of the aisle.

“Is everything ready?" Willow asked giddily. She was so excited; her best friend was getting married today.

“I hope we didn’t forget anything." Tara spoke.

“Chairs, altar, petals, curtains, candles… I think that’s everything." Dawn counted off her mental check-list.

The three girls eyed each other for a few seconds until the two witches called out in unison:

“The priest!"

“Oh, God! We forgot the priest!" Willow said nervously.

“Calm down. I phoned Buffy to ask her to go by the church and get the priest." Dawn explained. “But the way she and Spike are going at it, we’ll be lucky if we get the priest here around this time tomorrow." The brunette sighed and got a sympathetic look from the two witches.

“But they look so cute together. Running around hiding." Tara piped up.

“You say that cause you’re not the one who has to go home with them." Dawn muttered.

“They go home together?" Willow frowned. “Not too good at the sneaking around, are they?"

“No. They don’t come home together. Basically, Buffy and I get home, she tries to get me to go to bed as early as possible and then she locks herself in her bedroom, waiting for her knight in shining armour." The teen mocked. “Do they think I’m completely deaf?"

Willow tilted her head as she came to closer to Dawn and ran her hand over her cheek in sympathy.

“I feel for you, sweetie."

Dawn smiled at that and wrinkled her nose.

“It’s not that bad. I’m actually grateful that those two actually decided to-“

Tara and Willow’s widened eyes shut her up and she turned to find Buffy and Spike walking into the room.

“Hey. What are you guys doing?" Buffy asked somewhat flushed as she tried to flatten her cashmere skirt, which was slightly wrinkled.

‘ _Guess why.’_  Dawn rolled her eyes.

“Wow! This place is looking great." The Slayer applauded, walking around to examine the room.

“You like it?" Tara asked.

“It looks amazing!" Buffy assured.

“Great job. How’d you get those up there?" Spike questioned, leaning against the wall and pointing at the curtains that dropped from the beams.

Tara mumbled a few words in Latin and in a few instants she was hovering in mid air.

“Handy." Spike uttered.

“Buffy?"

“Yeah?"

“Where’s the priest?" Dawn wondered.

“Huh?"

“The priest? Short, old man? Likes to wear black dresses and crosses?" Dawn elucidated.

“Oh, my god! I forgot the priest!" Buffy exclaimed, bringing her hand to her forehead.

“See?" Dawn rolled her eyes again.

“What? I forgot."

“Well, what are we gonna do now? Anya should be arriving with Giles in about half an hour and we don’t have a priest."

“Don’t worry, nibblet. I’ll get him." Spike announced, pushing himself off the wall.

“I’ll go with-“

“No!" The three girls said simultaneously, cutting off the Slayer.

“You go alone. W-we need Buffy to… to do girl stuff." Willow stuttered, pulling at the Slayer’s sleeve.

The vampire seemed to pout for a second but eventually he conceded and left the room.

“Hurry!" Dawn called after him.

“Are you guys ok?" Buffy questioned.

“Fine." The three replied.

The blonde frowned but ignored it, chalking it up to wedding day nerves, especially since something else was drumming away in the back of her mind. She had decided that today would be *the* day. She couldn’t postpone it anymore.

“Um… You guys? I need to talk to you about… um… something." She fidgeted nervously with the edge of her shirt, feeling three pairs of eyes on her. “It’s about… I really don’t know how to say this so I’ll just say it." She paused and swallowed hard before looking up to meet their gazes. “Spike came to this wedding not just… um as a guest but… as… um… asmydate." She said in one breath.

“What?" Willow asked with a frown. Buffy had spoken the last part so quickly she genuinely hadn’t understood her.

The Slayer inhaled and exhaled sharply before she repeated:

“Spike’s my date for the wedding."

She stared at the three; waiting for a reaction. Any reaction. Mostly, she expected screaming and shouting and criticizing. But there was no reaction. They simply eyed each other, shrugged and went about their business, checking on the last arrangements for the decoration of the room.

Buffy frowned.

“Did you guys hear what I just said?" She asked, setting her hands of her hips, watching the three women walk around the room.

“Yeah." Willow replied.

“And?!"

The three stopped and turned to look at her. The redhead was the one to take the initiative again:

“We know, Buffy."

At her friend’s confused look she continued:

“About you…"

“And Spike." Dawn finished her sentence.

“What?! Since when?" Buffy practically choked.

“Well…" Willow muttered. “Tara kinda… told me when we…"

Buffy’s eyes drifted to the blonde witch.

“Sorry." Tara mouthed.

“And how do you…" Buffy turned to look at her sister.

“Oh, come on Buffy. You guys are just so obvious. Sneaking around, giggling and smiling the whole time. And our walls at home? They aren’t sound proof." Dawn explained.

Buffy felt the blood rush to her face and her cheeks turned red almost instantly.

“Oh, my God. I can’t believe it. I’m just so…" Her hands came to cover her face and the words became incomprehensible.

The three girls were huddled around her immediately.

“Don’t worry. It’s ok." Dawn tried to calm her.

“We’re ok with it. Really…" Willow assured, pushing the blonde threads that tumbled to cover her face.

Doe-eyed, the Slayer look up.

“What?"

“We kinda expected it…" Willow tilted her head. “The way you two have been hanging out together since… you came back and then… the way you were when Sam showed up. All jealous and-"

“I was *not* jealous." Buffy insisted with a pout.

Willow’s lips curled to the side.

“Fine! So I was a bit… jealous." Buffy admitted as a smiled finally tugged at her mouth. “So, you’re ok with it?" The question wasn’t directed at anyone in particular, but her hopeful gaze fell on her sister.

“I’m kinda scarred, but I think I’ll be able to recover."

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier." Buffy apologized.

Dawn simply smiled back.

Suddenly, Buffy remembered:

“Who else knows? Oh, God! Giles? Does Giles know?"

Three simultaneous nods were the answer she received and once again her face was buried in her hands.

“He probably had coronary, didn’t he? He hates me. Doesn’t he?"

“Actually, he was the one who figured it out." Willow explained.

“Huh?" Buffy’s head snapped up.

“He was the one to finally speak up. He was tired of the rest of us pretending not to know you two were… doing it every chance you could get." Dawn clarified.

“What about Xander?"

“Well, he’s a different case. He refuses to leave La-la land." Willow said.

“Where is he?" Buffy asked.

“Out back. Nervous as hell over the wedding."

“Dawn! Don’t swear." In the middle of the haze and confusion that surrounded her mind, Buffy still managed to reprimand her sister. “I better go talk to him."

“Good luck."

Buffy walked across the room; her hand rested on the doorknob for a second while she turned to look at the three girls standing a few feet from her.

“Thanks, you guys."

~+~

He rubbed his sweaty hands together as he paced around in the alley. ‘ _You’re getting married. You’re getting married… Today!_ ’ He inhaled sharply; his eyelids falling closed. ‘ _Don’t panic._ _Don’t panic._ ’ He kept repeating to himself. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts he didn’t even hear the door open and close.

“Hey…" Buffy’s soft voice filtered through his clouded mind and he seemed to snap out of his mantra.

“Hey!" He greeted, nervously running his hand over his gelled hair.

“You ok?" She questioned.

“Yeah." He forced a grin onto his lips as the word came out in a weak and faltering tone.

 “It’s normal to be nervous, you know?" When Xander raised his eyebrow at her she added: “So I’m told."

He stopped pacing to look at her and the two smiled at each other.

“I can’t believe I’m actually getting married."

“Neither can I. You’re all grown up."

“Now you’re sounding like my mom."

“Sorry." Buffy smiled.

There was a moment of silence between them. Xander leaned against the hall, his hands buried in the pockets of his tuxedo.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something…" Buffy started; her gaze was fixed on the floor as she spoke. “It’s about Spike and the fact that he came to the wedding. Thanks for inviting him, by the way. I know you two never really got along. Always fighting and bickering." Buffy babbled on and on as she unconsciously tried to postpone the inevitable.

Her long ramblings were occasionally interrupted by a muttered ‘uh-huh’ from Xander. The two friends stood in the alley, each too involved in their own worries to realise that none of them was actually paying attention to the conversation/monologue taking place.

“…nice of you to invite him." She took in a deep breath. “Anyway, I wanted to tell you – and please don’t freak out about this too much! – that… that…" The next sentences came out so fast that it sounded like a senseless string of words. “That Spike is also here as… my date. I know it’s impossible to even imagine. And I understand if you’re feeling freaked, or angry or even nauseous, but I’m telling you, this is not just a brain spasm of mine, I really do like him. Actually, I love him. And I know that sounds insane and crazy and just plain wrong but it took me a long time to realise this and now that I’ve finally gotten the courage to accept it, I’m not going back on in. I really hope you can understand that what Spike and I feel for each other is real and that you can accept it too." She inhaled sharply, looking up at him for the first time since the beginning of her rant as she paused for a second; once more waiting for a reaction. Xander’s reply was the ever constant ‘uh-huh’.

“Uh-huh? That’s all?" She questioned in disbelief.

“Oh, God Buffy! She’s gonna be here in ten minutes. Is the priest here? Is the Giles here? No! Of course not. He’s gonna give Anya away. Of course he’s not here yet." It was Xander’s turn to babble.

“Xander? Did you hear anything I just said?"

“Huh?"

She sighed frustrated.

“I said that Spike and I-“

“Do you think the training room looks good? I’m not too sure about the candles. Maybe they’re a bit too much. Anya said she wanted something simple. Or maybe the curtains will catch on fire! Oh, God!" He exclaimed.

“Xander! Are you listening at all? I-“

“I heard you, Buffy. I’m trying to ignore it." He mumbled in defeat. “I’ve known it for a while now. I was just waiting it out. See if it would go away, you know? But it’s my wedding day. Can you just let me hang onto the illusion that you’re not boinking Spike for one more day? Please."

Buffy smiled at him.

“Ok." She agreed as she came up to him and wrapped her arms around him. She sighed in contentment as he brought her closer for his traditional bear hug. It was amazing how safe and loved she could feel in his embrace. When they finally parted, she looked up at him. “I’m not just boinking Spike, you know that right? I actually lov-“

“Shattering my illusion here, Buffster."

“Oh, sorry!" She apologized. “No illusion shattering. I promise."

They smiled at each other. The sound of a door opening snapped them back to reality.

“The priest is here." Willow’s red head popped from behind the door. “Giles just pulled up out front. You ready?"

Xander smiled and nodded.

They were about to walk into the building when Buffy felt Xander tugging at her sleeve.

“Are you happy?" He questioned with a serious look on his face.

“Very. You?"

“About to be." He replied, smiling as they entered the room.

 ~+~

“And if there be any person present who knows just cause why this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, let him speak now or forever hold his peace." The old priest’s voice echoed in the room.

Xander and Anya stood at the altar, grinning wildly, fidgeting with their new rings as they waited for the silence to pass.

A cough filled the room and everyone turned to look at the vampire that sat at the end of the only row of chairs.

“Sorry. Got something caught in my throat. Please, go on." Spike spoke up with a huge grin.

Xander’s eyes narrowed at him, sending him a murderous look.

As the priest continued with the ceremony, Buffy frowned at the vampire, smacking him across the arm.

“What?" He mouthed innocently.

“You may now kiss the bride."

Slowly, the standing couple turned to face each other as they kissed.

“I am proud to present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Harris."

The six guests were on their feet applauding as the couple came down from the altar.

“Congratulations!" Giles was the first to reach them. His arms wrapping tightly around the young man, bringing him in for a strong embrace while Willow and Tara hugged Anya.

Even though there weren’t too many people, a small commotion started as everyone wanted to congratulate the newlyweds. Finally, there was some room and Spike came face to face with Xander while the rest of the group huddled around Anya.

“Congrats! I guess you actually had the stones to go through with it after all." Spike couldn’t help jab as he extended his hand to the young man.

To his surprise the groom not only accepted his hand but brought him in for a hug. The vampire frowned a bit and it took a few instances for him to react and reciprocate. Xander was lightly patting him on the back when Spike heard him whisper in his ear.

“If you do anything to hurt Buffy, I swear I’ll dust you in your sleep."

The two broke apart and Spike was greeted with a genuine smile.

“Don’t worry. I won’t." The vampire replied.

The two turned to look at the small crowd that gathered around Anya. The four women and the shopkeeper huddled around the newlywed, giggling hysterically.

The sound of Xander clearing his throat for the third time caught the group’s attention and they turned to look at the two men standing a few feet away from them.

“Can I have my wife back now?" Xander wondered as the group parted ways.

“I can’t believe you actually got married." Willow said throwing her arms around her best friend.

“Are you crying, pet?" Spike wondered with a frown when Buffy came to stand next to him.

“No!" She denied vehemently as she brushed her eyes with the back of her hand. “I just got something caught in my eye."

“Right."

“It’s true." She insisted.

With a smile she stood on tip-toes and brushed her lips over his.

“Oh! It’s official? We can talk about it now? Since when? No one told me **!** " Anya protested.

“It’s official." Buffy said glancing at Giles.

Just before the ceremony had started she had managed to speak to him for a few minutes. She felt relieved to find that indeed her ex-watcher was ok with the idea. Even though he did manage to lecture her on her particular propensity to fall for the undead.

“Good! Now we can go on double dates." Anya announced enthusiastically.

Both men groaned at that for a second.

With a huge grin on his face, Spike wrapped his arm around Buffy’s small form. He had wanted to do that since forever and was glad to finally get the chance to display his affection for her in public, even though the hiding had been fun.

His eyes drifted over the small group in front of him, laughing and giggling. Who would have thought four years before, in that dark night at the Bronze, when he had first seen a glimpse of them, that the same gang that he had vowed to destroy would be the new family that would welcome him.

He felt a warm sense of peace and tranquillity wash over him as he pondered over the past few years when, suddenly, a flash of red caught his eyes. His gaze immediately drifted towards the backdoor. A feminine shape stood there, clad in a black hooded-cloak which covered her from head to toe but still a glimpse of auburn hair was visible between the shadows that masked her identity. He watched as she lifted her head and the dim light lit her pale face; pitch black eyes stared right at him and a smile spread over her lips when their gazes met.

Silently, she opened the door and crept out of the building unnoticed by anyone but the vampire.

“Hey, are you ok?" Buffy’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

He looked to see her straining to find the object of his attention.

“Me? Couldn’t be better." He replied leaning in to kiss her again.

  
  
The End


End file.
